Quilt Market Goodies Giveaway

We have a winner!! Congratulations to Laura who left the 88th comment.

 

A huge thanks to all of you for participating in my Sew Mama Sew giveaway - and extra love to those of you who became new blog followers or Etsy shop hearters ;)  

I'll be posting the results of the favorite new fabric lines later today so check back soon for the must have fabrics of 2012!

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I returned home from International Quilt Market yesterday only to learn that today is Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day (week, really). I was planning to do a giveaway of market goodies anyway so talk about serendipity!

A Kona Charm Square pack, four 2 1/2" square bundles of new Moda fabrics, a signed copy of Transparency Quilts by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr, a copy of "Mary Janes Farm" magazine, Melody Miller temporary tattoos, and a cool button from Liesl & Co.

To win this bundle of quilty goodness scored in Kansas City, please leave a comment with the answer to the following question:

Which new or coming soon fabric line do you absolutely have to have in your stash?

This giveaway is open to anyone. Please leave your entry before 5 p.m. PST on May 25th.

I will announce the winner in this post on the night of May 25th. I will also contact the winner via e-mail, so please leave your e-mail address in your comment if you're a "no reply" blogger.

Finally, while it's definitely not required, I would be delighted if you decided to follow any or all of the following -

my blog
my boards on Pinterest
my tweets 
my little Facebook page
or heart my Etsy shop (Quilt Market fabrics coming all this week)

Phew. That's a lot of social media.

Good luck!

-Annik

Four's a Charm Baby Quilt - Fabric Requirements

Looking for a fun and easy baby quilt pattern? Well, look no further. I call this Four's a Charm because it's four patches made from a charm pack. Get it? Of course you do. Moving on...

This project is ideal if you're new to quilting. I'll give step by step instructions as we go. And please feel free to leave questions or comments.

The finished quilt is 40" square.

Fabric requirements:

• 36 - 5"squares, either from a charm pack or bust some scraps - I'm using Sherbet Pips by Aneela Hoey for Moda
• 1 yard Kona Cotton in Coal (you really only need 28", but I rounded up a bit) or sashing/border fabric of your choice
• 1 1/4 yards backing fabric. Measure the backing fabric. It must be a minimum of 42" wide. If it's not at least that wide, be prepared to piece the back.
• 1/3 yard binding fabric or you can squeeze by with 1/4 yard if you opt for 2 1/4" binding

You'll also need:

• Crib size quilt batting. I typically buy the organic cotton kind from Poly-fil/Fairfield
• Cotton thread
• A rotary cutter, self-healing cutting mat, and a long clear acrylic ruler
• Pins
• Basting spray (I like 505 Spray Adhesive best) or quilting safety pins 
• If machine quilting, you will need either a darning or stippling foot if you're planning to do free motion quilting, or a walking (a.k.a. even feed foot) if you're planning to do straight line quilting. A 1/4" piecing foot really is really helpful, but it's not a requirement.
• Oh, and a sewing machine and an iron come in handy, too! ;)

 This pattern is really very simple. It's contrast that makes it interesting. Keep this in mind as you select your block and sashing fabrics. Remember that contrast can be achieved either by pairing complementary colors or via value. For more about this see my post called Color Theory 101. And when in doubt, ivory looks good with just about everything.

Get your fabrics together. We'll start cutting shortly.

-Annik

Link to Four's a Charm Page

Counting Down

Today's the last day of the Sew Mama Sew Giveaway Day (week?). This my first time participating and the experience has been absolutely amazing.

In just a few hours I'll announce the winner of the Robert Kaufman Kona solids charm pack. Thanks to all of you who took the time to leave a comment (and become followers). I have so enjoyed reading your comments. FYI, color wheel, rainbow, and bowtie quilts are hot!

Wow, so many of you are quilters! Are you all new to quilting like I am or have you been doing this for eons?

Speaking of something new, I finished my very first mug rug yesterday for the Minneapolis Modern Quilt Guild holiday social/swap last night. What fun! I can see why everybody is making them. It's addictive, and talk about instant gratification. Here's my teeny tiny quilt:

front

back

I flipped through my mom's MacKenzie-Childs catalog during our Thanksgiving visit. Those checkerboards must have seeped into my subconscious :)


Now that my mug rug is done, it's time to concentrate on holiday preparations. I only started Christmas shopping yesterday (don't laugh). Today I'm tackling the physical clutter in my sewing room so I can clear out the mental clutter and get down to business. Wish me luck.


See you again at tonight. There's still time to leave a comment to win the charm pack, just head to this post. Good luck!


-Annik

(Road) Blocks

Did you read my post about the Marimekko print that got away? I still don't own any vintage fabric happiness, but I did score a dining room table and chairs this past week! The table is solid teak, made in Denmark, and weighs about 10,000 pounds. It's lovely.

And what are those pinwheels, you ask? That's my Robert Kaufman Kona challenge in progress.

A minor miracle will be required for me to finish this quilt by Thursday.  I was planning to sew all weekend, but sadly, my daughter developed a high fever out of nowhere (104.1 last night). Today is all about snuggling and taking care of my girl - quilting will have to wait. Whether I finish my quilt or not, I'm very excited to see what the other Minneapolis Modern Quilt Guild members have made with their charm packs!

Happy sewing,
Annik

W.I.P. Wednesday #4 Kona Charm Challenge (still, again)

You know, I might be having more fun photographing this quilt than actually sewing it.

Today I took my tired toddler to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts to check out an exhibit on op art textiles from the 1970's. I'll have photos and details in my "Fieldtrip Friday" post. Something to look forward to, right? In the meantime, if you need me I'll be in my sewing room making millions of triangles!

Happy sewing,
Annik

Kona Challenged

6 block done, 35 to go.

Did you say the reveal date is 10/13? Bwahahaha....

Bit off more than I can chew?

Last night was the September meeting of the Minneapolis Modern Quilt Guild. Man, there are some seriously talented quilters in this town.

Our little guild is currently working on the Robert Kaufman Kona Solids Charm Pack Challenge, with the big reveal on October 13th. Our theme is half square triangles. I'm way behind this go round. While I've had an idea in my head for months, I only started cutting and piecing this morning.  So my dear children - sorry you're feeling neglected but Mom's got to finish this quilt...

Charming!

Oh, the colors!

Um, what was I thinking?

Did you watch this week's Project Runway? Think I'll blog about it tomorrow.

Happy sewing,
Annik