A Lovely Year of Finishes

I received an invitation today to join Melissa of Sew BitterSweet Designs and Shanna of Fiber of All Sorts' 2013 challenge, A Lovely Year of Finishes. I'd seen it described on both of their blogs, but hesitated to join in because I'm trying to go commitment light in 2013 (what with a baby expected mid-year and all). But when the invitation came on Flickr, I couldn't resist.  Here's how it works (copied from their blogs):

Each month pick one project, anything you like (it can even be an entirely new project, so long as you can finish it in the current month) and tell yourself, “I Will Finish It.” Then write a blog post about the project and link it up to our Goal Setting linky party. Spend the rest of the month working on your finish. We will have a mid-month check, and though you are not required to link up to that post, it would be fun to see your progress! Finally, after you have finished your project, write a second (or third) post showing us your Lovely Finish and link it up to our “Finishes Party.”

Other group members posted mosaics of their 2012 finishes, so I joined right in and made my own. I was disappointed to realize that there were some projects I didn't take finished photographs of, like my wonky log cabin placemats (Update! Found the photo but not going to redo the mosaic). I also haven't taken good photos of the Hungry Caterpillar quilt yet, due to Snot-fest-chez-us and copious amounts to snow.  

Here's the mosaic of my finished bee blocks:

I think I can make this happen, if I keep my ambitions within reason. June might be tricky...I wonder if finishing growing a human being can count as my June project?

Coming out of Hibernation

Our house has not been a fun place to be lately. We are entering week three of snot-fest 2012. All three of us are suffering terrible colds and are basically miserable. Mid-illness, we bundled ourselves up, packed our suitcases, and headed to Ottawa to visit family for six days. We had a nice time, but were happy to be home in our own beds.

Needless to say, not much sewing has been done. I did manage to redo Christine's herringbone block. Recall that I'd ended up with an off centre result the first time around:

The second time around went much better and I'm pleased with the block. You'll notice that the crown fabric is upside down, hence my reversing the top of the block in this photo. Hopefully it won't be out of place in the final quilt top arrangement.

I'll be sending both of these blocks off in the mail tomorrow. Maybe Christine will be able to use the wonky block in her quilt back. 

Next up for me is another baby quilt. I'm excited to get it started!

Lucky Stars? Yes Please!

Have you heard about the Block of the Month club that Elizabeth is running over at Don't Call Me Betsy?  It's a Paper Piecing BOM and the blocks are all stars. Members will receive a block a month in two different sizes (12 inch and 6 inch), plus regular Google chats for members only and support from Elizabeth throughout!  Right now it's only $10 USD to join (the price will go up on January 5).

Since I've decided not to sign up for any year long bees in 2013 (with a baby on the way in June, I'm going commitment-lite in 2013) this is perfect for me. There's no one counting on me to finish on time and there's something new to look forward to every month. I noticed many of my Sewing Summit Flickr friends signing up already, and the BOM was just announced today!

I'm already beginning to think about what fabrics to make this quilt with. Dare I use my Liberty of London quilting cotton? Or should I go with solids? I still have a huge stack of blue and green Kona FQs put aside. Or maybe I'll just stash bust...

Anyone else thinking of joining in? Come on, you know you want to! 

It Started So Well...

Everything was going along well. The fabrics were lovely, the pattern was easy to follow and I was going to finish ahead of schedule.

I carefully trimmed the block as directed. I thought I'd measured correctly, 6.5 inches from the centre of the red triangle. And yet. Clearly it is NOT centred. Ugh! I really don't want to redo the block. There are so many other projects I'd rather be working on. Bummer.

WIP Wednesday: The Sidetracked Edition

What I should be working on: Christine's December block for the We Bee Learning Bee. It's a Broken Herringbone block (Play Craft's tutorial is here). Aqua, red and grey has been an incredibly popular colour combination and this is the first time I've used them together. So far, so good.

The other project I should be working on: finishing the binding on the Hungry Caterpillar Quilt. I'm making progress, inch by inch, but my attention is elsewhere.

I've caught the hexie bug! All I want to do is add to my hexagon block. I plan to keep adding hexies until I have a 12.5 by 12.5 block to add to my collection of plum and chartreuse blocks (acquired via the 3 x 6 bee on Flickr).

On Deck
Bungle Jungle baby quilt
A second baby quilt for a friend - maybe using my Flora charms?

In Progress

Hedgies & Hexies block

Farmer's Wife QAL - I'm on block 17 now

Hungry Caterpillar Quilt - almost done, just a little binding to sew down

We Bee Learning December block

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

Hexies and Hedgies

I decided not to take the English Paper Piecing class at Sewing Summit last October. To be honest, I really didn't understand what all the fuss was about sewing hexies. Sure, they are cute, but why was everyone in blogland so obsessed with them? I do love learning new techniques though, and I've heard that EPP is great for using up scraps. I have a LOT of scraps. So, when I saw that Johanna was teaching a three hour workshop at The Workroom, I signed up.

You guys, I drank the kool-aid! Hexies are SO. MUCH. FUN! They are perfect for fussy cutting. Plus, they are totally portable. 

I'll but using these first flowers to make a block for my grey, chartreuse and plum sampler quilt. I need around six more blocks to make a lap sized quilt. These hexies will be a great addition.

WIP Wednesday: New Canadian Fabric Spot!

It has been a productive week. I just started sewing down the back of the binding on my Hungry Caterpillar quilt! It looks like all that worry about my FMQ pebbles was unnecessary because the quilting looks amazing. Check out the free-style stitching I did in the white space.

Not bad, eh? I can't wait to pack this beauty up and send it off to my friend. It's such a wonderful feeling to make something special for someone you love.

I picked up two charm packs for Bungle Jungle from a new online shop called My Fabric Spot. Karen carries a ton of Kona Solids, organic cottons and really lovely designer fabrics. Best part? It's Canadian! I placeed my order on Monday night and my fabric arrived today. Inexpensive shipping and no customs charges? Now that's something to celebrate.

These charms are destined for a another baby quilt, this one for my cousin. I'm going to base the design on I made for Nita recently.

Using charms, this will sew up very quickly.  I'm thinking three or four wonky stars in gold, a thin royal blue border and a thick gold outer border. Sweet, simple and the perfect welcome for a new addition to our extended family.

And now for the weekly WIP list.

In Progress

Farmer's Wife QAL - I'm on block 17 now

Hungry Caterpillar Quilt - almost done, just a little binding to sew down

We Bee Learning December block

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

Weekend Round-up

When the concierge called to say there was a package for me at the front desk, I said to my husband, "I didn't order any fabric!" What could it be? Only the nicest surprise ever! My friend Shannon (who blogs at Hello My Name is Quilt) recently went to the Denyse Schmidt and picked up these awesome note cards for me. How sweet is she!? I was so touched,

In other news, I took a trip to The Workroom today to choose binding fabric for The Hungry Caterpillar quilt. They had just received Simply Color, the fabulous collection by V and Co. In addition to some lovely prints, there are seven ombre fabrics. I chose the grassy green and think it will make the perfect binding. I also picked up the ikat print in three colours, and a grey chevron.

Finally, I chose fabric from my final block of the We Bee Learning bee. I had thought we were done and that there was no December mama, but it turns out it's Christine's month. She chose a fractured herringbone block in red, aqua/teal and grey. Here's the stack I selected.

What did you get up to this weekend?

WIP Wednesday: Pebbles Fail

Thanks to everyone who weighed in on how I should quilt the marbles section of my Hungry Caterpillar quilt. Had I been smart, I would have taken your suggestions and gone with a simple meandering pattern. Instead, I decided on on pebbling. I felt that the marbles required a round quilting motif.

My inexperience is painfully obvious. Have I totally destroyed this quilt?!  Some of you commented that the stitching wouldn't be that visible. Now that you see my stitching, do you still think that? I don't think I have the patience or heart to rip it out.

The WIP Wednesday List

Done

Nada, nothing, no finishes this week

In Progress

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress
Farmer's Wife QAL - I'm on block 17 now

Hungry Caterpillar Quilt - quilting 3/4 done

We Bee Learning December block

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

More or Less?

I've been working away at my Hungry Caterpillar quilt and I'm nearing the end of the quilting phase.  I did straight line quilting around the red border and loops in the blue border. My free motion quilting steadily improved and I'm excited to continue to practice this new skill!

I chose stitch an outline of the leaf, butterfly and caterpillar and then I boxed the white space around it with straight line quilting.

Here's my dilemma. There's a fair bit of unquilted space surrounding the pictures. I don't want to add any quilting to the white space around each picture if I can avoid it. I do think that I'll need to do some quilting in the coloured marbles section though. It's just too much unquilted fabric and I think that from a structural perspective, I need to quilt there. The question is, what should I quilt? I feel like I should do something circular to highlight the marbles, but pebble quilting takes so long to do and uses a lot of thread. 

So I throw it out to you - what would you do?

WIP Wednesday: Quilting for Kids

When I saw that my We Bee Learning bee mate Nita was collecting blocks through the Quilting for Kids group on Flickr, I knew I'd be adding my name to the list of contributors. I'd just finished her November block and hadn't mailed it yet so the timing was perfect. This is the third quilt I've donated a block to through this group. The group is run by Sara and we make quilts for kids in foster care. These children often bounce from home to home with little in the way of personal belongings. These quilts not only bring them warmth, but are something they can call their own.

Nita asked for a Reverse Starburst block, using this tutorial from Diary of a Flutter.Kat. The block is a big one; it's 17.5 inches unfinished!  I love how mine turned out.  I can see making an entire quilt using this block in rainbow colours, or even making a lap quilt out of one large block.

 

It's been a long time since my last WIP Wednesday post. I've been working away at my Farmer's Wife blocks. I've been hand piecing them so progress is extremely slow. I finally got caught up on my bee blocks and am quilting a baby gift for a dear friend, also very slowly. I hope to finish the quilting over the weekend, although that is probably unrealistic. I should just aim to get it done before the end of 2012!

The WIP Wednesday List

Done
We Bee Learning Bee blocks for October and November

Quilting for Kids block for Nita

Curves mini-quilt
 

In Progress

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress
Farmer's Wife QAL - I'm on block 17 now

Hungry Caterpillar Quilt - quilting is a third complete

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

A Year of Blocks: A We Bee Learning Bee Retrospective

I have just finished my final two blocks for the We Bee Learning Bee.  This was the first online quilting bee I joined, and I learned a lot through the process. But, before I get into that, let's take a look at my October and November blocks!

I lost my sewing mojo in October and knew early on that my block would not be done on time. Luckily, Josie was very gracious and said to take my time and make the block when I was ready. She gave us three star block options and I went for the simplest one, a Sawtooth Star.  She asked for a red and blue on a neutral background.

Nita asked for a Converging Corners block with a fussy cut centre in greens, with a little yellow or orange if we needed variety. My centre square ended up being rather large, so I was only able to get in two rounds of corners, but I really like the end result. I'd like to make an entire quilt using this block. It would be fun for an i-spy quilt.

As I said, I learned a lot from participating in this bee, but it wasn't the type of learning that I anticipated. I can't really say that my quilting skills improved or that I learned new techniques, although I did try blocks that I wouldn't have chosen myself. The things I learned were actually about my personal preferences and hangups, and they aren't all pretty.

1. I am totally anal when it comes to quilting. I need my seams to line up as perfectly as possible.  I have a hard time saying "it's good enough." This perfectionism does not make me well suited to participating in bees.  See, many people ARE able to say "it's good enough" and that's great! I applaud them.  But, I might not end up using all of the blocks I receive and that makes me feel badly, because I know the ladies who made them worked hard on them and I don't want people to feel hurt. 
2. I am a perfectionist (see point #1). Bees that are open to anyone result in a wide variety of skill levels. This was a beginner bee, and I WAS a beginner. But, since I'm a perfectionist, I think I'd be better off participating in private bees where I know the participants, their style and their work.
3. I am a fabric snob. I purchase, use and prefer designer fabrics. I haven't shopped at Fabricland (the Canadian version of JoAnns) since I first began sewing. In bees you don't have control over what other people use.
4. Colour choice is critical for me. I've learned that one person's aqua is another person's light blue is another person's sea green. I've also learned that even when you think you are being very specific, you can't control how people interpret your request. For example, you might request a white background and someone may use a white on white print instead. Technically, the background is white, but the block probably isn't useable if you were hoping for all of the background fabrics to blend together. For my month, I selected primary colours on a black background in an effort to ensure uniformity!

Now lest you think that I am a horrible, judgmental person who thinks terrible things of the ladies I swapped with, please believe me when I say that I really enjoyed this bee! The women involved were kind and supportive. Best of all, the participants were chatty! I love being part of Flickr groups where people post comments on each other's photos.

I haven't started constructing my quilt using the blocks I received because I need to add at least another four, if not eight, blocks and I'm not keen on trimming all those HSTs. But Levi is quickly approaching the end of his crib days which means his bed quilt will need finishing.

While I don't intend to join a year long bee again in 2013, I will join another round of the 3x6 bee at some point next year. I have collected 12 chartreuse and plum blocks (but only 10 are useable) and would like a few more to make a larger quilt top.

What about you? Have you had good experiences with online bees? I'd love to hear the good, bad and ugly in the comments!

I Suppose I've Done Some Sewing After All

The past few weeks have been a bit of a slog for me. I've been feeling blue and so. very. tired. Picking Levi up from daycare has become a daily battle and an exercise in patience (which I have always lacked).  For whatever reason, he rages against putting on his jacket and getting into the stroller. It's not just when leaving daycare, it's in the morning as well, which is weird because he loves arriving at daycare (breakfast! toys! playmates!). By the time he's in bed, I'm bagged and I just want to sit on the couch and do nothing at all.

Okay, fine. I haven't done absolutely nothing. I've managed to watch the entire season of Call the Midwife, which if you haven't seen you simply must download as soon as you can. I bought the season's pass from iTunes. I've also been working on my Farmer's Wife blocks, because I love to hand sew while watching television.

Okay, and I did begin a baby quilt for a dear friend after learning that my Mom was attending her shower this coming weekend. Since my folks were visiting us, I'd hoped to power through and finish the quilt, but alas, it wasn't meant to be.  I used a panel I bought last year of The Hungry Caterpillar and kept the piecing as simple as can be, but the free motion quilting did me in.  I don't have a lot of experience with FMQ. It took awhile to get my tension right and to find a rhythm. Also, I kept breaking my needle! I think I was sewing too slowly and moving the quilt sandwich too quickly. I was getting terribly frustrated and did I mention I've been oh. so. tired? So I took a break and have yet to return to the machine. 

Luckily, the baby isn't due until the new year, so I'll just ship it to my friend once it's done.  Looking at the quilting now, I realize it actually looks quite nice. I plan to finish the loopy FMQ in the blue border and straight line quilt the red border (with cross-hatching in the corners). For the panel, I'm going to outline the leaf, butterfly and caterpillar and pebble quilt the circles. I haven't decided on a binding fabric yet.  The quilt is backed with the softest flannel and a pattern of ducks.

Snapshots of a Weekend

Levi loves to grab his "drum" and lead his Dad and me on a parade through the apartment. On Saturday, we marched up and down the halls of our condo. It was difficult to get a good photograph because Levi moves at lightening speed!

My two favorite men in their matching jackets, en route to The Workroom. 

Why yes, those are stunning Liberty of London quilting cottons. I placed an order at the The Workroom by email last week, because I knew I wouldn't make it into the shop before today and I was afraid that the ones I wanted most would sell out.  The Workroom is running a fifth anniversary sale running right now and I got these beauties for 25% off.

Curving Blossoms Mini Quilt

Have you heard of the Blogger's Quilt festival, run twice annually by Amy of Amys Creative Side? It's an amazing online quilt show where quilters from across the blogosphere showcase the handiwork. There are prizes to be won, but more than anything, it's a chance to be inspired by your fellow quilters.

I wavered between entering my Happy Melon Quilt and my most recent finish, my Curves Mini Quilt. I'm so very proud of my Happy Melon Quilt; it's my largest quilt today and is in a palette I adore, but it feels a bit like old news. So, let me introduce you to, the Curving Blossoms Mini Quilt!

This quilt was designed by Christina Lane of The Sometimes Crafter, and the pattern debuted at Sewing Summit in her Curves class (which I blogged about here). Christina didn't share the pattern in advance of the class so I had to chose and cut my fabrics without knowing how they'd be used! I think this is what makes the quilt so amazing to me, because the fabrics worked out perfectly for the design! The Amy Butler Soul Blossoms print in the centre was my feature fabric and came from my scrap collection. I actually got this piece in a Scrap Bag from The Workroom and it was just a small little piece that I was hoping to find the right use for. Success! I chose four hues from this print and looked for two values of each in my stash. I don't think I succeeded in finding enough contrast in value for my chartreuse prints, but the rest work well.

I'll admit that I wasn't very creative with my quilting. I went with the same design that Christina used for her sample piece. I just felt that it was the perfect compliment to the pattern and that anything I came up with would pale in comparison. Honestly, I think it was the right choice.

The quilt back was pieced from some of the leftover cuts used for the quilt top. I'm really happy with it. I just love a scrappy back! As this is a mini quilt and will likely hang on a wall or be used on a table under a bowl or vase, the back won't be seen often, but I still think it's important to create a quilt back that you'd want to look at, don't you?

Now, head on over to the Blogger's Quilt Festival and check out the other amazing entries!

Blogger’s Quilt Festival Stats

Finished quilt measures: 17.25" X 17.25"

Special techniques used: Curves!

Quilted by:  Me

Best Category: Doll/Mini Quilt, Wall Hanging

WIP Wednesday: The Not Much Doing Edition

November is never an easy month for me. As daylight wanes, my mood dips and it takes time for me to adjust to the change. For whatever reason, "November" has arrived early this year. I'm completely exhausted and after putting Levi to bed, all I want to do is sit on the couch with my feet up. As a result, I haven't plugged in my sewing machine since the weekend when I quilted my mini quilt. Tonight, I'll finish hand sewing the binding. Photos to come!

Before Sewing Summit, I prepared four Farmer's Wife blocks to work on during downtime. Hah! The only time I had to work on them was during my flights to and from Salt Lake City.  I finished block 21, Contrary Wife and I think it looks terrific, if I do say so myself.

Here are the fifteen blocks I've completed so far. It will likely take me years to finish this quilt, but it sure it fun to work on.

Done
Nada, nothing, zip-o-lah
 

In Progress

Curves mini-quilt - finishing up the binding by hand

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress
Farmer's Wife QAL - one more block!

October We Bee Learning Bee -must do this weekend

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress

I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

The Real Sewing Summit Recap

While I've already told you about the Curves class I took at Summit, there's so much I haven't blogged about yet. The six months of anticipation were definitely worth it. It's hard to know where to start, so I'll try chronological order.

Ella on the left, Shannon on the right

I'm glad I decided to go a day early and participate in the Shop Hop. People are often surprised when I tell them I'm an introvert. At work, or when in a leadership role, I can be outgoing, but I get nervous in unfamiliar social situations. The shop hop allowed me to get to know people in a smaller group. I'd arranged to grab coffee with one of my blog friends, Shannon of Hello My Name is Quilt, but she's a total morning person and hit Starbucks way too early for me. But, she brought me a latte for the bus ride. Thanks Shannon! I also connected with Ella of Throw a Wench in the Works, who I've swapped with twice in the 3x6 mini bee, on the shop hop.  We were loaded up with swag at every stop along the hop, plus I picked up a a ton of new fabric. I would definitely recommend signing up for the shop hop to Summit first timers.

Shop hop purchases

On Thursday night I went to dinner with a terrific group of ladies. It was another chance to make connections in a smaller setting, which I appreciated.

 

Friday was a whirlwind of classes. My first class was a serger class where we made a ruffle scarf. I discovered that the serger and I do not get along. I don't know why, but I am terrible at serging! I ended up with holes and wonky edges. I didn't even bring my unfinished scarf home - it was that bad! My machine partner Tina had much more success than I did.

My other classes on Friday were Zippers 101 with Sara of Sew Sweetness, Photography with Vanessa Howell (I picked up some great tips) and my Mini Curves quilt class.

Sara during Zippers 101

The zippered pouch swap also took place on Friday. I love the pouch I got. It's by Nydia of the ADD Quilter. Isn't it pretty?

Shannon and I ended the day with dinner at a fabulous Indian restaurant. We swung by the party put on by the Salt Lake City Modern Quilt Guild, but to be honest, I was so tired I just wanted to head back to the hotel and go to sleep.

On Saturday, I took a Metal Frame pouch class with Kelly of Kelby Sews which was fabulous, a lecture on blog design (man, does this blog need a redesign!) and I made a Maxi Skirt on the dreaded serger. I made mistake after mistake, but the instructor was very patient and I ended up with a skirt that fit. Hooray!

Sewing Summit is really about so much more than the classes and the swag (omg, the swag! We got so much great stuff from Summit sponsors!). It's about being around 250 people who share the same passion you have for creating beautiful pieces from fabric. And that, in and of itself, is reason enough to go. I can't say enough good things about the experience. In fact, I've been in withdrawl since returning home. I can't wait until next year! Thank you Erin and the Sewing Summit team for putting on a fabulous event.

WIP Wednesday: The Still Recovering from Summit Edition

You guys, it's killing me that I haven't blogged about Sewing Summit yet, but I am still SO TIRED from the trip. Seriously, I'm exhausted. It probably didn't help that my journey home took over sixteen hours due to a tornado warning in Chicago.  The storm led to a cancelled flight and extended layover at O'Hare, the worst airport I've ever spent time in.  Remind me never to fly through Chicago again!

My show and tell piece for this week's WIP Wednesday is from my favourite Sewing Summit class, Christina Lane's Curves class. She blogs at The Sometimes Crafter which I encourage you to browse just as soon as you finish reading my post. I learned to sew curves in my Sampler Quilt class at The Workroom, but haven't attempted them since so this class was a great refresher. Plus, Christina showed me how to sew curves without pinning! Which is awesome, because do you know how many pins to need to use to sew a nice curve? Too many! 

Christina designed a mini quilt for the class and last week I showed you my fabric selections and the backing I pieced.  She plans to post the pattern on her blog, so definitely keep an eye out for it.

At first I wasn't thrilled with it but the more I look at it, the more I love it.

I finished the ten curved blocks during class time and the rest of the quilt top was completed during open sew on Saturday night. I really wanted to come home with it done. This weekend I'd like to quilt and bind it. I haven't decided on a quilting design yet. Any suggestions?

One of my other favorite classes was a lecture on blog design by Melissa Esplin. I gleaned a ton of information. Bear with me as I work on cleaning up Modern Balabusta to make it more readable!

And now my bi-weekly stats:

Done
All sorts of Sewing Summit projects like the Tula pouches, my name tag and my 241 tote
 

In Progress

Curves mini-quilt - to be sandwiched and quilted

Curious Nature quilt - no progress

Sew Intertwined quilt -no progress

Flora Charm Quilt - no progress
Farmer's Wife QAL - I hand-pieced a block and a half on the plane

October We Bee Learning Bee - I need to get cracking on this one!

Hibernating projects

Levi's Growth Chart - no progress

NY Beauty QAL - no progress

We Bee Learning Bee/Levi's Bed Quilt - No progress
 
I'm linking up with  Freshly Pieced and the Canadian Needle and Thread Network. Head on over to see what everyone else is working on.

Travelling Tula

I did it! I somehow found time to make a zippered pouch for the Sewing Summit swap and I'm so glad I did because it's pretty fabulous. I made a second pouch to hold my Farmer's Wife block supplies that I'm bringing to work on in transit.

I used a Tula Pink print from the Nightshade line for the outer fabric of both pouches. I bought it at the same time I bought the stack I gave away for my 100th post and have been waiting for the right project to use it for.  The square pouch, which will be swapped, features a turquoise Oval Elements print and my flat pouch used a gorgeous shot cotton from Westminster. It's purple with blue highlights.

I'm getting a bit nervous about my trip. I'll be away from Kivi and Levi for four nights! And I'm going alone. I won't know anyone. I mean, I have Flickr and Twitter and blog friends going, but we've never met in real life and what if no one wants to hang out with me? Everyone else is feeling anxious too, right? Yeah, I'm going to assume they are. 

See you after Summit! Wish me luck!
Linking up with...