Farmer's Wife Quilt-Along

OK, so by now I totally embrace the fact that I'm a little bit crazy. The latest bit of proof? I decided to jump in to the Farmer's Wife Quilt-Along, being hosted by Amanda and Angela. The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt is the basis of a book by Laurie Aaron Hird that features 111 6" block patterns. Every block is made by templates, which are found on the CD in the back of the book. You can check out Laurie's website to learn more.

I really wanted to jump in to the project because I am always so inspired by Amanda and Angela and the beautiful things they make, so I thought it would be fun to join them -- and a bunch of other Twitter buddies -- in this long-term project. The plan is to make 2 blocks per week, encouraged by all of the other quilt-along members.

The sampler quilt in the book is made from more traditional fabrics in muted tones, but I wanted to put a more contemporary spin on the quilt. I was lucky enough to get a FQ bundle of Terrain, Kate Spain's upcoming new line for Moda, at Quilt Market last month. (Thanks, Katy, for braving sample spree for me!) I decided to use these amazing colors and prints as the jumping off point for my blocks -- not sticking to this line exclusively, but including at least a bit of the line in each block.

I was so eager to get started this weekend that I made 4 blocks. No, I'm not an overachiever -- I just know that the next few weeks are going to be crazy here in the Quilt Dad household so I thought I'd get a bit ahead while I can.

Here's block #2, called "Autumn Tints", featuring some Terrain, Habitat by Jay McCarroll, and some Heather Ross horses:

This is block #21, called "Contrary Wife". I used Terrain, Moda Bella solid in a deep blue called "Terrain Iris", and a pink woodgrain from Joel Dewberry's original Aviary line:

Here's block #9, called "Box". It features a Moda Bella solid called "Terrain Cactus", a brown print that I don't know the name of (!), and a center square from Modern Workshop by oliver + s:

Finally, I decided to make block #48, "Homeward Bound", with more of the Aviary woodgrain, Terrain leaves, and 2 prints from Lizzy House's Castle Peeps line:

I'm having a great time already with these blocks, and it'll be fascinating to see how everything starts coming together over the next year.

Want to join us in the quilt-along? It would be great to do this along with all of you! Be sure to join the Flickr group, and leave me a comment if you decide to jump in. I'd love to see your blocks!