Modern Batiks & Free Wheeling Single Girl Blocks

Even before I knew about the Me + You Virtual Fabric Challenge sponsored by Sewtopia and Hoffman Fabrics, I had already purchased two of the five black and white prints along with the blue lapis print pictured here.  I just love the irregularities in the fabric created by hand stamping the fabric with the wax resists and then dyeing.

Hoffman modern batiks from the Me + You collection

And another picture of the five fat quarters received for the Sewtopia virtual fabric challenge.

Hoffman batiks for Sewtopia fabric challenge

This Indah solid in chartreuse is another one I had originally ordered.  Here it is pictured with the purple mini charms from the mini charm jar received in my Sewtopia swag bag.  I liked this color combination but was not sure what I would do with the fabric.

Indah solid in Chartreuse with mini charms

To be certain I had enough fabric, I ordered a couple of prints from Alewives Fabrics in Maine.  I love their rustic packaging with the twine and pearlized pins.

Now I had to decide what to make from the challenge fabric.  I decided to add two purple prints to the mostly black prints and pair them with three different chartreuse prints. I decided to revisit Denyse Schmidt's Freewheeling Single Girl pattern.  I made one block in Deynse's class while at Sewtopia in Atlanta in April.

Here are the three blocks completed so far.  I plan to make one more block and add a 10" border all the way around, bringing the size to around 60" square.  After squaring up the blocks, they measure 22 1/2" unfinished.

Free Wheeling Single Girl Block 1 by Paige Alexander

Free Wheeling Single Girl Block 2 by Paige Alexander

Free Wheeling Single Girl Block 3 by Paige Alexander

I came the realization I could not finish the quilt without rushing through it for the May 31st deadline. According to the rules, we can make anything from the challenge fabric, so I need a Plan B!

While I decide on Plan B, I am linking to Beth at Cooking up Quilts for Main Crush Monday.

Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Vol. 13 WINNERS

Thank you everyone for the encouraging comments on my block, It All Adds Up, recently published in Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Volume 13 Magazine.

The winner of the 100 Blocks Vol. 13 Magazine sponsored by Quiltmaker is Alex:

And the winner of 100 Blocks Vol. 13 plus the Cotton + Steel charms packs is Barbara:

Congratulations Alex and Barbara! 

From the comments, many of you have already made a plus quilt or are planning to do so.  It looks like an abundance of UFOs is the only thing keeping others from making a plus sign quilt.  

Thank you Quiltmaker, my first blog hop was so much fun and a huge success!

Travel Tissue Covers (Assembly Line Method)

The annual awards luncheon for my garden club was yesterday and I decided to make travel tissue covers as party favors.  I have made these in the past, but did not remember the cutting measurements and found this great tutorial for travel tissue covers at Two Brown Birds.

Travel tissue covers by Paige Alexander

For the focus fabric I choose a Kaffe Fassett print, Roman Glass in Leafy. And I chose two Michael Miller Cotton Couture solids for the accents in Coral and Wisteria.

The pieces were cut 5 1/2" x 6 1/2" for the focus fabric and 5 1/2" x 7 1/2" for the accent fabric.  Knowing I would be sewing in assembly line method (and fast), I cut all of the strips 5 1/2" by the width of fabric.  That way, I would be sewing the two fabrics together along the lengthwise grain where there were be no stretching as opposed to sewing on the crosswise grain.

Note:  Next time, instead of cutting the pieces 5 1/2", I will increase it by 1/4" and cut at least 5 3/4". After turning and adding the tissues, it was a tight fit.

Once the two seams were sewn, turned and pressed this is what it looks like.  There should be 1/4" of accent fabric showing on each side.

Tissue cover after two seams sewn

To quickly fold the outer edges to meet in the center, I used the rotary mat to help with alignment. I placed the two sewn pieces (with the focus fabric on top) on the mat, centering it on the boldest line of the mat (the 5" line). The accent pieces extend 1/4" on either side of the 2" and 8" lines.

Tissue cover in progress center on 5" line of cutting mat

Next, I folded one side in to meet in the center using the 5" mark on the mat as reference.  I then pinned in place.

One side of tissue cover folded to meet in the center

At this point it was not necessary to use the mat as reference, I could just fold the opposite in to meet the already folded fabric and pin.

Both outer edges of tissue cover folded to the center and pinned

 I sewed them in assembly line method one after the other.

Tissue covers under the machine

I backstitched a couple of stitches in the middle where the seam would receive the most stress.  And I overlocked the raw edges for a clean finish.

Tissue covers stitched and overlocked.

I felt like the most time consuming part was turning them right side out. Here's where That Purple Thang can in handy.

Travel tissue covers with That Purple Thang

Here they are, all 24 of them, lined up in a basket.

Travel tissue covers by Paige Alexanders 

I snapped pictures of some bellflowers and a Japanese iris yesterday while at the Kilgore Lewis House, which is the headquarters for the Greenville Council of Garden Clubs.  The Spring Garden Tour is taking place Friday and Saturday, May 13 and 14.  If you are near Greenville, SC, you will surely see some beautiful gardens of residents in the area.

Bellflowers at the Kilgore Lewis House, Greenville, SC

Japanese iris at the Kilgore Lewis House, Greenville, SC

Linking up to Finish Up Friday, Whoop Whoop Friday, Quokka Quilts hosting Thank Goodness Its Finished Friday this week, Fabric Frenzy Friday and Show Off Saturday.

Block #10 - Last Lemoyne Star

Note:  The giveaway for Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Vol. 13 Magazines and

Cotton + Steel charm squares is still open through Thursday, 5/12 at 8pm.

  See my block, It All Adds Up, and comment to win, here!

This is the 10th block challenge for Modern Quilts Unlimited Everything Old is New Again block and quilt challenge.  Each month we have been given a traditional quilt block to interpret in a modern way.  The size of each block must finish at 12" when sewn into a quilt.  And, there will be a quilt challenge at the end.  I named my block, Last Lemoyne Star, because I don't have plans anytime soon to make another.

Last Lemoyne Star by Paige Alexander

In EQ7 I explored different sizes, from 10" to 14", of the traditional Lemoyne Star block and printed out the block outline and templates of each.  I originally thought I would piece an oversized block and using my 12 1/2" square up ruler, cut it out a little cattywampus.  But as I was piecing, I could tell I had not made the block large enouch.  Plan A went out the window.  What could I do now?

I decided to extend the inset triangles and make the corner square larger. This way I would keep the original size of 4 of the diamonds and the upper left hand corner formed a half square triangle.  I did crop out the seam allowance, so you are seeing the block as it would be pieced into the quilt.  

Here is the Lemoyne Star block as presented by Modern Quilts Unlimited for the challenge.

Another challenge requirement was to use any Michael Miller fabrics in the construction of the blocks.  I have been using Cotton Couture in Pluto as the background and Apple, Azure, Lava and Magenta in the other block pieces.  Here are my previous nine blocks.

You can read more about my Sailboat block here,  Rail Fence block here and Square in a Square block here.  I can't believe we have just two more blocks to complete and then the quilt challenge will take place. You can read more about the challenge rules here.

Well, one thing is certain...making an entire quilt from Lemoyne Star blocks will not be going on my quilty bucket list!

Linking up to Let's Bee Social , Needle and Thread Thursday,  Fabric Frenzy Friday, and Show Off Saturday.

Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Vol. 13 Blog Tour + Giveaway - It All Adds Up

Welcome!  I have been anticipating my stop on Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Blog Tour and glad you here! If you are new to my blog, I'm Paige and you can read a little bit about me here.

I am so honored that my block and first published pattern, It All Adds Up, is included in this issue of 100 Blocks and I am participating in my first blog hop!

It All Adds Up block by Paige Alexander

I wanted fabrics with high contrast and chose Scribble Dot in Red from the Breezy Blooms collection by Susan Rooney for Benartex and Petite Plus, from the Black and White collection by Cotton and Steel, a division of RJR Fabrics.  The background is Kona Cotton in white by Robert Kaufman.

Petite Plus from Black and White by Cotton + Steel and Scribble Dot from Breezy Blooms

I forgot to take a picture after I added my signature to the block so here it is in the magazine, block #1253 on page 36.  You can tell I'm just a little excited, right?

It All Adds Up in Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks Volume 13

I originally drew the plus sign block on graph paper and then digitized the design in EQ7.  Here is the 4 by 4 layout from EQ7 rendered in the same fabrics as the original block with the every other block rotated 90 degrees.

It All Adds Up with blocks rotated 90 degrees

And since you can quickly and easily swap out colors and fabrics in EQ7, here are a few variations in the same 4 by 4 block layout.

1. Each plus sign is a different color within the block and rendered in fabrics from the Flow collection by Zen Chick for Moda Fabrics.

It All Adds Up rendered in Flow by Zen Chic for Moda

2. This time all the plus signs are the same color, Tic in Pickle and the background is Blueberry Carpal Stone, both from Carolyn Friedlander's 4th fabric collection, Carkai, for Robert Kaufman Fabrics.

It All Adds Up rendered in Carkai Tic in Pickle and Blueberry Carpal Stone

3. More Carkai was used in this one and has more of a masculine feel.  The plus signs are Metallic Windowpanes in Navy and the background is Tic in Parchment.

It All Adds Up rendered in Carkai Metallic Windowpanes in navy and Tic in parchment

4. This one is rendered in batik blenders which coordinate with the Crystalia collection, the 2016 Hoffman Challenge fabric.

It All Adds Up in Hoffman batiks

5.  And one of my favorites is this one rendered using different fabrics from Handcrafted Indigo by Alison Glass for Andover Fabrics and a white background.

It All Adds Up rendered in Handcrafted Indigo

You can see the different looks achieved by using just one fabric, two fabrics or four different fabrics for the plus signs.  You could even make a scrap quilt and make each plus sign from a different fabric.  One plus sign can be easily cut from one charm square.

Quilts 1 through 5 were all designed from fabrics in the EQ Stash Online 2016 Download 01.

And now on to the Giveaways!

Giveaway #1.  The editors at Quiltmaker are sponsoring a giveaway for a copy of 100 Blocks Vol.13 and they will mail the magazine directly to you anywhere worldwide.

Cotton + Steel Basics

Giveaway #2.  I have a copy of 100 Blocks Vol. 13 plus 3 Cotton + Steel Basics charm packs (26 pieces total) to give away to one lucky person.  I will personally ship this giveaway to anyone worldwide.

How to enter:

1. Leave a comment letting me know if you have made or would like to make a plus sign quilt.

2. Followers, old and new alike, get a bonus entry.  Leave a second comment and let me know how you follow, either by Bloglovin, Instagram or Email.+

Update: Giveaway is now closed and winners will be notified.  Thank you for your comments!

The giveaway will run through Thursday, May 12th and close at 8pm.  I normally respond to every comment received, but during the giveaway the volume may be to large for me to do so. Please leave your e-mail address so I have a way of contacting you if you are a no-reply blogger.

I hope you have enjoyed the 100 Blocks blog tour this week at Quiltmaker's blog, Quilty Pleasures . To see all of the creative and original blocks in this issue, 100 Blocks Vol. 13 is available on the newsstands now or you can order 100 blocks from Quiltmaker to see other great blocks included in this issue.

Melon Basket Mosaic

I always enjoy looking through and voting on the mosaics when Rachel at Stitched in Color issues a challenge to create a nine-fabric mosaic based on the chosen theme.  With summer coming on, what could be more refreshing than Cool Melons.  She always includes beautiful photograph collages and has such a way with words to describe them.

When I think of melons, watermelons in particular, I can't help but laugh and will tell you a little story at the end.  But first, let me share the mosaic I created from shopping though all the beautiful fabrics at Gotham Quilts.  I chose fabrics to represent cantaloupes, honeydews and watermelons at their ripest.

Melon Basket Mosaic by Paige Alexander

The fabrics include:

Row 1

• Mercury in Green from Sun Prints by Alison Glass
• Medium Dots Tone on Tone in Orange from Riley Blake
• Spark Coral Double Gauze from Bespoke by Cotton and Steel

Row 2

• Confetti Dots in Coral by Dear Stella
• Butterflies in Green from Tiger Lily by Heather Ross
• Emes in Tangerine from Lucky by Lotta Jansdotter

Row 3

• Doe Eyed in Tangerine from Moonshine by Tula Pink
• Newsprint in Coral from Paint from Carrie Bloomston
• Etapp in Green Olive from Lucky by Lotta Jansdotter

When I created the first mosaic, I used this lighter green, Vintage Dot in Lime by Denyse Schmidt for the center, but after seeing the butterflies from Tiger Lily I thought it best represented watermelon rind and pulled all the other fabrics together so well.

Now, on to the reason for my laughing when I think of watermelons.

My husband's family has always been game players, both card games and board games.  One evening we were playing Taboo with my brother-in-law and his wife.  The guys were on one team and girls on the other.

For those of you not familiar with Taboo, Wikipedia describes it is a word, guessing game and the objective of the game is for a player to have their partner(s) guess the word on the player's card without using the word itself or the 5 additional words listed on the card.

It was my turn to give clues and the card I drew was Watermelon.  Therefore, I could not say the word watermelon or the other words on the card.

Watermelon card and timer from Taboo on Kona Mango

When playing the game you can use words or sentences to describe the taboo word that you cannot say aloud.  My first thought and the clue I gave was,

"You can make a basket from it."

And without me saying another word, her immediate response was,

"WATERMELON"

The men couldn't believe it and just rolled their eyes.  I guess we have attended to one too many bridal or baby showers where we have seen watermelons carved into a basket and filled with melon balls and other fruit.

I found this pretty watermelon basket by Wardah at Best of Wardah.  She even has a step by step to make your own.

Watermelon basket by Best of Wardah used with permission

Now you know why I can't help but smile and sometimes chuckle when I see watermelons and melon balls!

Curating this Melon Basket mosaic was fun!  Rachel is accepting entries until midnight on May 8th, so you have plenty of time to create your own cool melon mosaic.  I think you will enjoy looking at the other cool melon entries at Stitched in Color so head on over to her blog.

Orange Crush Colour Block Challenge

The challenge that distracted me this time was the Colour Block Challenge issued by Angie at Gnome Angel where you make quilt block, create a flat lay inspired by the colors in the block and photograph it all.  I saw a couple pop up on Instagram but then Kitty at Night Quilter got my attention when she posted hers here.

I must confess, I first looked around my sewing room to see if any color stood out more than others. I needed to make a 12 1/2" string block for the guild philanthropy project and with it being a scrappy block, I could go with most any color.  I started seeing orange more than other colors and here is the result.

Orange Crush string block for Colour Block Challenge

Since my block was larger them most blocks, I needed a lot of stuff to fill my photograph.  In my original photograph it looks fairly sparse, but by cropping it down it appears to fill the space.  It was harder to photograph than I thought it would be.  I used foam core board as the white background.

Colour block challenge photo before cropping

Here's a close where you can see more of the block and some of the items included in the photograph.

Colour block challenge detail

And once I finished photographing, I piled most everything in the atomic orange tray.

Items used for flat lay photograph

Take a look at the the posts for the Colour Block Challenge on Instagram.  Two of my favorites posted are this blue and red block by Lisa @sewinabind and this nature inspired block by Karen @runsewfun. The challenge is open through May 4th.

I hope to create more of these flat lays as time permits. Oh, and there are prizes involved, so hurry and make yours by May 4th.

Linking to Main Crush Monday, Fabric Tuesday, Let's Bee Social and Scraptastic Tuesday.