It's all about the collaboration, people!

I'm really excited that the Modern Quilt Guild invited me to be a guest blogger today to kick off their week on collaboration, part of their 100 Days of Modern Quilting series. For me, the whole appeal of quilting, sewing, blogging, Flickr-ing, Tweeting, Facebooking lies at the heart of where they all connect, and it can be boiled down to one word: collaboration. Simply put, I play this game because I love the people I get to play it with and -- more importantly -- I can help create things more beautiful, ambitious, and inspired than anything I could ever create alone. Sure, swaps and bees are the most obvious points of collaboration -- but I believe that even taking the fabric and artwork created by a designer and then making something new and different from it is a form of collaboration.

In my post, I highlight a quilt that I've never shown off in all its completed glory here on the blog: my SewConnected quilt. I just recently finished binding it up, and it immediately became one of my favorite quilts. Ever. I love the happy colors, the gorgeous prints, the modern block designs, and the fact that I now have a little bit of 12 other fabulous quilters living in my house with me. Thanks Jacquie, Amy E., Meg, Stefanie, Dee, Amanda Jean, Amy D., Audrey, Buffy, Sarah, Rita, Tracy, Lyssa, Jessica, and guest block-maker Rachel for sharing your time, skill, and talent with me.

See more pictures of my quilt and read more about my thoughts on quilting and collaboration here.

WIP Wednesday : WIP's on Parade

Alternate post titles: "Quilts with Feet", or "Sexy Man-ankles". Any would be appropriate!

So the kids were at Camp Grandma up in NYC last week and, per usual, I took the week off of work. Early in the week, Mrs. QD and I enjoyed an overnight trip to Blowing Rock, up in the North Carolina mountains. But for the latter part of the week, she began her PhD program and I was left to my lonesome.

What's a quilting dad to do?

It is so rare that I enjoy several consecutive uninterrupted hours of sewing that I decided I needed to tackle some of my bigger projects. Namely, the (embarrassingly high) stack of blocks that all need to be assembled into quilt tops. You know all of the quilting bees that I participate in? Well, I'm ashamed to admit that I had yet to sew together a single quilt top from the bee blocks I'd received.

I was a man on a mission. And between Wednesday and Sunday I sewed together 5 -- count 'em, 5 -- quilt tops. I have no idea when I'll be able to get them quilted, but no matter for now. I am just so glad to have made a dent in the WIP pile.

Wanna see 'em? I thought so! And heeeeeeeere we go ...

First up were these blocks, originally sewn up for a friend's wedding gift 2 years ago, made from Amy Butler's Midwest Modern line.

Next up were another set of blocks that I sewed together a LONG time ago ... as in, this was one of the first set of quilt blocks that I ever made. They're made from some of my favorite Fresh Cut prints by Heather Bailey, and the pattern is the popular Turning Twenty. This one actually still needs its final border.

Then I moved on to my growing pile of quilting bee blocks made for me by my many talented Flickr friends. I started with my original virtual quilting bee, the SewConnected group that I started back in September 2008.

I absolutely LOVE this quilt. It's just so ... happy. It features so many of my favorite fabrics, including Flea Market Fancy and Katie Jump Rope by Denyse Schmidt, Farmer's Market by Sandi Henderson, and Flutterby ladybugs by Tula Pink. They all go so well together.

Why did I wait so long to put this together??

By this point I was on a roll, and I was so excited to move on to my SewConnected 2 quilt. I had my SC2 friends make me mini improv houses, and boy did they deliver. I opted to use a light grey (Kona Ash) instead of white as my neutral, and I'm so glad that I did. I know I am going to LOVE this quilt for years to come.

I rounded out the weekend with my SewConnected 3 quilt, made from Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks line. I asked for quarter log cabin blocks and love the way all of the prints are mixed up together. I think this line has cemented its place as one of my all-time favorites.

And yes, those are my sexy mankles (man-ankles) in the photo above! : )

So there they are -- 5 quilt tops in 5 days. I can add them to my stack of tops ready to be quilted, which was already stacked 4 high. Oh, what's that? You want to see them, too? OK, your wish is my command!

Here's a colorful quilt top made from a line of fabric called "Mendhi" by Bill Kerr & Weeks Ringle of FunQuilts from a few years back. The pattern is the free Brick Path quilt by Amy Butler.

This is another top made from some Amy Butler prints -- this time, her Lotus line. The pattern is called "Flip a Coin" and was featured in one of the (or even the?) very first issues of Fons & Porter's Easy Quilts magazine.

Here's a pretty basic (i.e. no pattern) HST / pinwheel quilt made from a charm pack of Look & Learn by American Jane and bordered with some of my favorite ruler fabric:

I got a lot of great feedback on this next quilt when I first started blogging. And here it sits, still unfinished. It's another Turning Twenty quilt, this time using some wonderful Prints Charming fabrics.

So some of my unifinished stacks of blocks have turned into unfinished quilt tops. But that's OK, right? One step at a time ...

I still have a bunch more to work on, including my Cottage Quilting Bee, Bee Inspired, Buzz Cuts, and {Bee} Imaginative blocks.

Any thoughts or suggestions on backing, binding, or quilting designs for any of these? I'd love to hear them!

April, May, and June Bee Blocks

It's been kind of quiet on the sewing front. I'm chalking it up to it just being a busy summer with the kids, the new puppy, the on-again / off-again moving saga and, oh yeah, the full-time job. I actually have made something pretty major -- my new pattern for the next issue of Fat Quarterly, coming in just a little over a week.

More on that project soon, but in the meantime I thought it was a great time for a long-overdue recap of quilting bee blocks.

Here's the block I made for Sara / sames05 for the Buzz Cuts bee back in April. Sara asked for monochromatic blocks made up of squares, rectangles, strips or triangles from fabrics from our stash. My color was brown. Here's what I came up with:

April was Ashley's month over in {Bee} Imaginative. She requested square-in-square blocks in the style of Denyse Schmidt's popular Drunk Love pattern. Here are the two blocks I made from her lovely lilac, green and gray fabrics:

April was our final month over in the bee inspired group. I made these two square and rectangle blocks for Lisa / lharsma:

Moving on to May ...

This beast of a block is 16.5" and was made for Adrienne / Arnden's Space for the Buzz Cuts bee. She requested blocks made from this tutorial (scroll down) in shades of blue & green, made entirely with fabrics from our stash:

May was Amanda / sasikirana's month in {Bee} Inspired. She sent a whimsical selection of prints along with a lemon yellow shot cotton and asked for any design that featured flying geese. After deciding to do some fussy cutting, here is what I came up with:

Another bee that's wrapping up is my own SewConnected 2. Our final swapper was Kristen / kirbyloulou . She sent an assortment of "upcycled" blue and white pattern shirts and asked for blocks in the Gee's Bend / strip style. This was a fun challenge, and I loved working with the non-traditional materials! Here's what I came up with:

And now, June ...

Over in {Bee} Imaginative, Jacquie of Tallgrass Prairie Studio asked for rectangular blocks in the modern / improv style. She sent two solids -- an aqua and a charcoal gray -- as well as a patterned IKEA print. Here's my interpretation of Jacquie's theme:

And finally, for Jennie / sunflowerquilt's month in Buzz Cuts, she requested a scrappy block made from this tutorial using our own scraps and a black & gray dotted print that she sent. Here's what I made for Jennie:

Another great scrap-busting pattern!

I hope you enjoyed this round-up of bee blocks. Have a wonderful week!

Quilting Bee Blocks | March 2010

Wow, what a difference a weekend makes. I have lots and lots to share with you, dear readers. The best news is we sold our house this morning! Fingers crossed that it all goes through OK, but it looks like we'll start looking for our new home closer to Chapel Hill. We've also got a new member of the family, and those of you who follow me on Twitter already know what I'm talking about ... if you don't, stay tuned for more info. It seems like my blog writing can't keep up with the pace of my life these days!

In the meantime, I thought it would be a good time to catch up on sharing my quilting bee blocks. I really love the batch of blocks I have to share with you today! March was a good month for quilting bee inspiration.

First up, for the SewConnected 2 group, Rita sent out some really gorgeous shot cottons and wanted "love" blocks in the spirit of this amazing quilt. I went around and around on what to make for Rita (so many ideas!) and finally landed on a "Be Still My Heart" block from Jacquie's free block tutorial over at Tallgrass Prairie Studio. I added some extra borders and was quite pleased with how it turned out!

In the SewConnected 3 bee, Solidia asked for spiderweb blocks using mostly Denyse Schmidt "Hope Valley" fabrics and a nice charcoal gray for the centers. These blocks were a bit of a challenge because, unlike other spiderweb blocks that I've made, these were not paper or foundation pieced. Solidia asked us to use an online tutorial that uses regular piecing. I had to work over the numbers a few times in my head before starting to cut, but I think they turned out OK!

Also in SewConnected 3, Leah requested the popular "Circle of Geese" block. I love making these blocks. They might look intimidating, but this was the first paper-pieced block pattern that I ever tried. Trust me, it's beginner-friendly!!

Over in Buzz Cuts, Jennie sent out red, white and black fabrics and wanted us to feature the adorable chickens however we saw fit. I made two big 15.5" blocks, and can't wait to see how Jennie's quilt turns out.

SO cute!

March was Julie's turn in the {Bee} Imaginative bee. Julie wanted wonky log cabins / square-in-square blocks, and pointed to this wonderful quilt as her inspiration. I was able to make two for Julie, and really enjoyed working with her fabric selections.

And that's it for March! Another month in the books. I just finished up my April blocks this weekend (nothing like waiting until the last minute), so I hope to have them up to share soon.

Have a great week!

Quilting Bee Blocks | Jan/Feb 2010

Happy day-after-Easter! I hope you all had a nice weekend. The weather was beautiful here in NC -- and it's supposed to reach 90 degrees tomorrow!

I was busy, busy, busy this past weekend (thanks in no small part to my mom being in town, aka built-in babysitter). Three fairly sizable projects are thisclose to being completed, another Hoop Up embroidery piece done, and two quilting bee blocks started last night (and expected to be finished tonight). The mojo definitely feels like it's in high gear -- even if it is still just catching up on past due deadlines!

While I have a quick moment, I thought it was a good day to catch up on blogging about the past few months' worth of quilting bee blocks. But before I do, I wanted to let you know about a new site that Erin recently set up called QuiltingBeeBlocks.com. Ever wonder about the ins & outs of virtual quilting bees? Want to join one, or start your own? Looking for inspiration for the bees that you're already a member of? Well, check out this fun & informative site that's an offshoot of Erin's already-popular Flickr group.

First, some news from my corner of the VQB world. My original quilting bee, SewConnected, has come to an end. December was our last month, and the final few blocks are making their way home to their rightful owners. SewConnected was my first (and, in many ways, my favorite) bee and all of the members were amazing, so it's somewhat sad to see it come to an end. I'm still on the fence about another round for the group -- I know many of the people feel as overcommitted as I do right now, but who knows what the future will hold? I am going to keep the group on hiatus for right now, and revisit it in a few months' time.

Another of the bees I had been participating in, the Cottage Quilting Bee, has also recently wrapped up.

We're also nearing the finish line over in SewConnected 2. January was Beth's month and she managed to send out her fabrics just before giving birth to her new baby daughter, Abbie! I made her this fairly simple block because I really wanted to showcase all of the different prints that Beth had selected:

February was Doris' month. Doris wanted to make a neighborhood quilt with all sorts of houses. She was especially interested in house blocks more simple in form and a little bit wonky. Doris sent along some greens for the landscape and I dipped into my scrap bin for the rest.

Over in SewConnected 3 (January), Gretchen sent us all black fabric + two additional solids. Her request was for more traditional, Amish-style blocks. I picked this pinwheel-style block from Quiltmaker's "100 Designer Blocks" magazine from a few months back. I really love how it turned out. I think Gretchen's quilt will be a stunner.

We unfortunately had a bee member that had to drop out of the swap, so as the group's leader I volunteered to make some replacements for those still waiting for their blocks. I made this additional block for Gretchen on her behalf:

I also made a replacement block for Cathy, whose month was a few months back. Both this pattern and the last are also from the "100 Designer Blocks" magazine -- certainly getting my money's worth!

Although I am actively trying to reduce the number of swaps I am in, I did recently sign up for a second year of Kimmie's Buzz Cuts bee. It's such a great group of very talented quilters that I just couldn't resist. Plus, everyone there is so nice!

January was Lish's month and she sent a stunning selection from Moda's Soiree line. I received fabrics from the blue colorway and made three 9" blocks for Lish.

First, a paper-pieced Lantern Light block from Quilter's Cache. (LOVE this one!!)

Here's one that I kind of made up on my own:

And finally, a block from one of Judy Hopkins' quilt block books (can't remember the block name right now):

February was fellow Triangle Modern Quilt Guild member Rachel's month. She pretty much said "anything goes" (LOVE that!) and even welcomed rectangular blocks. I went all improv on this one and ended up with kind of a mini patchwork quilt with some wonky rail fence blocks in it. (Pic is from Rachel's photostream, since I didn't get a pic before giving it to her in person at our guild meeting!)



My newest bee is Heather & Kerri's {Bee} Imaginative group. (Here's a trick -- you can always spot one of Heather & Kerri's Flickr groups by the use of their signature curly brackets!)

Kerri was up first in January and wanted to make a mini gnome village in shades of red & aqua. I had tons o' fun making these blocks. I love making mini houses and stuff, and tried to do something new & original for Kerri. First I made little twin cottages -- maybe for two best friends who build their homes right next to one another? Or two married gnomes whose trick for a happy marriage is separate sleeping quarters? : )

Next up is a much simpler little gnome home:

I was on such a roll that I was able to begin a third block (though I didn't have enough white fabric to finish it up). I thought the village could use a nice big tree ... and look! Little Red is strolling underneath.

February was actually my month in {Bee} Imaginative and I have received some AMAZING blocks. I just got my last ones, so I will post them separately once I am able to get some good photos.

Last (but not least) is Rachel's bee inspired, which is actually also wrapping up in March. January was Natalie's month and she, too, requested mini houses. She sent a fun selection of prints that made me feel like I was designing the world's cutest little candy shop:

February was a two-fer month, with both Lynn & Deb up to bat. Deb sent along a really eye-catching collection of prints and wanted simple square/rectangle-type blocks. I went back to an old favorite layout and added in the coordinating aqua & orange birds. Great selections, Deb -- I LOVE how this all looks together!

And finally, Lynn forced me to finally confront my fear of paper-pieced spiderweb blocks (which I had been avoiding like the plague). I am so glad she did! They weren't nearly as hard to make as I had been expecting them to be. Don't you just LOVE all of that Lizzy House goodness in there? The rings of dots are amaing, the geese totally make me smile, and the medals & ribbons on the green background is quickly becoming a favorite print of mine.

Another quilt that I can't wait to see completed!!

Finishing up my March blocks this week ... how apropos for the first week of April, huh? Yes, I'm still lagging just a bit behind. How are the rest of you doing out there in quilting bee land?