Signature Quilt

Twelve years ago I started working at the best Arts and Crafts program in the Army. It was such a blessing to get the job and I loved it! I worked hard and when the job opened up to be the director of the program I applied. I never dreamed I would actually get the job! Nine years later I'm still here and still loving it!

Back when the store was "The Gussy Goose" we had a lot of quilters. When someone would move, one of the traditions was for everyone to make a block and sign it. Sometimes the blocks would go ahead and be pieced into a quilt top, and sometimes they would be delivered in a box for the person to put together the way they wanted.

I used to always joke, "I'm the one who never leaves. I'll never get a quilt!" Then a few months ago, when another employee was leaving, it dawned on me. Why not make my own memory quilt of everyone who worked with me?! Brilliant! I wish I had thought of it years ago!

I toyed with different patterns and nothing really felt right. Then just a few days ago I put the pieces together. I have been working on a postage stamp quilt of all my fabric scraps. What better way to make a memory quilt than to use THAT as my signature quilt?! 

So now for the signatures! I posted an all points bulletin on FaceBook and got a great response. More proof that you guys are the most awesome people to work with in the world! For those of you who said they would make a block and send it to me, this is your tutorial. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the memories we shared, what we learned together, and for your part in making the Arts and Craft program so incredible!

4 1/2" Signature Block

This is a preview of what the quilt will look like put together. The pattern is floating around the web, but I found this free pattern, if you are interested in making one yourself. I didn't use the strip method, but it's great for the rest of the pattern. 

Briar Rose Quilt Pattern

 Step 1: You need a 4 1/2" block of white (please make sure it's really white, and not cream) and two 2 1/2" blocks of scrap fabrics. This is fun because I get to see something from your stash!

Step 2: If it helps, you can draw a diagonal line across the little squares. That's where you will sew.

Step 3: Stitch across the diagonal, with the printed side of the fabric facing the white.

Step 4: Line up the corner of the little block with the corner of the white fabric. Then press. This helps get it properly lined up and keep the square 4 1/2". 

Step 5: Add your name, which facility/department you worked in, and the years you were here. If you have a fabric pen/marker please use it. If not, a pencil is fine and I can trace over it with a marker when it gets here.

I plan to work on this quilt for a long time, so there is no rush to get your block finished! I'm going to start this tradition with every employee, volunteer, and contractor when they leave. So depending on how long I stay here, it could be a very long work in progress. When you are ready to stick it in the mail, just shoot me a message on FB and I'll send you my address. 

Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH for being willing to participate in this quilt! I am so excited to start!

PS. This isn't my first time using this pattern. I had already started one with my BELOVED Modern Meadow that I finally cut into! This one is still a work in progress too, but about half finished. I needed to buy more white to finish it up. I started it as lap size, but loved it so much that I took it apart and added more blocks! I think it will finish out to queen sized.

Happy New Year!

I know it's a few days late, but hey, I still hope you have a great 2014! 

We don't really do resolutions, but we did start a Whole30, which is a month of really clean eating. I mean REALLY clean. Rob and I have used the Atkins diet principles to lose weight before, so we're fine with giving up bread, pasta, etc. But this one includes giving up DAIRY! Woah. No cheese for 30 days! Also, no latte. I know. 

It's been the hardest adjustment for Ethan because dinner every night is really healthy. More than usual. Tonight he cracked me. As I was cutting up a butternut squash he declared that "my dinner is always RUINED!" and stormed off to bed. I talked him into just giving it a try (it being a beef and pumpkin sautee that was really yummy) and he ended up eating three helpings! His last comment was "I wish there was more of this." HA! 

For my crafting goals I have a pair of pants to finish and fabric for a couple of shirts. But other than that I have given myself permission to not be sweat shop this year. I want to take it slower and focus on improving my skills. So I want to try some harder projects.

I can't wait to see what all my fellow bloggers are up to in 2014!

First Project of 2014!

One of my goals for 2014 is to blog closer to once per month, instead of once every few months. There are always lots of projects to share, but photographing, editing and blogging always seems to take longer than the actual project! So, don't hold your breath, but just know that I really do want to be better about sharing!

So this is the famous 1600 Quilt, so called because you start out by sewing all the strips from a jelly roll together end to end, making a strip about 1600 inches long. There are whole races set up around making this quilt! I got this done from start to finish in a little over one hour. The bulk of it took me about 50 minutes. The fastest I have heard someone complete it was 30 minutes! I don't know how they did it!

I started with a jelly roll of Kona solids. I took out the pinks and put in whites strips, but in the end I didn't like how that turned out. Even though I mixed them up, they ended up in blocks next to each other. What I wish I had done was taken out the pinks and added in more red, yellow and oranges. But live and learn! While I'm not over the top for this quilt pattern, I did find it to be a fast way to make a quilt, and it turns out to be a pretty good size. I might do it again if a jelly roll comes along that I really love! 

Here's to a crafty 2014!

Halloween

Hello blog! Long time no see!

I've been crafting like crazy, but have not taken the time to photograph things. Most of it has been for work, but eventually I'll get it photographed and on here. I've been quilting a lot lately. The quilting took a back seat, though, while we created our Halloween costumes.

Haven wanted to be Sonic the hedgehog, but that proved a little out of reach. So she decided to be Pikachu and she had her boyfriend, Marius, dress up as Ash, the player from the TV show. We ordered Haven's costume, which is basically giant fleece pajamas. We ordered the hat for "Ash" and Haven made his jacket by taking the sleeves off of a blue hoodie and layering it with a white shirt. It worked perfectly!
 Ethan wanted to be Steve from Minecraft. If you aren't familiar with the game then you probably don't have a young boy living in your house. It's an 8-bit video game that has a crazy following. I can't say I truly understand it's popularity, but whatever. We couldn't walk two feet without someone yelling "STEVE!" all night long!

 I had decided back in the summer that I wanted to be Merida from "Brave." I bought the bow and arrows at the Medieval market months ago. I know the picture doesn't show the elbows, but I got the poofy bits of fabric in there. The cape was a last minute decision, and I'm really glad I made it because it ended up being COLD. Oh, I even wore hair extensions to get the long red curly locks. I couldn't get my hair quite as full as hers... that's computer magic. But the kids knew who I was.

I've been trying something new with scrapbooking. I'm intrigued by the Project Life products we've been selling in our store. They aren't a new concept, but they've really gained in popularity the last couple of years. They are little pockets where you slip in cards or pictures instead of doing a detailed scrapbook page. They come in digital form too. So here are two pages I made using this style.

I kind of like the clean, simple look of it. And it's for sure easier than doing all the fancy layering and all. I haven't done much scrapbooking in the last year, so I guess if this helps me start working with my photos again then it's a good thing.

Minecraft Crafting

Do you have a boy in your life who has gotten sucked into the wonderful world of Minecrafting? I do. It doesn't make me happy. But I suppose it's better than shooting games and blood and gore. If you aren't familiar, you can read about it here. It's quite the "movement."

This school year we have a new rule. No screen time during the school week. Can I tell you how much this has improved our evenings? Well, at least mine. Ethan thinks I'm torturing him, but it has made a huge difference in my stress levels. It's so quiet in the house now! Do you have school age kids? How much electronic entertainment do you allow during the week? 

Even though I think Minecraft is terribly boring, I get that Ethan and all his friends enjoy it. Since a couple of boys have birthdays this week I decided to do some Minecraft crafting of my own. I've been using this Interfacing Piecing method to make blocks with 2 1/2" squares. (I have a few more projects in line to be blogged)

Minecraft Pillow

This is the front and back of the pillow. The front character is called "Creeper" and the back character is called "Enderman." I used five different colors of green, plus black to make creeper. Ethan L.O.V.E.D. it. He didn't really want to give it away as a gift, but I assured him more would be coming. I have plans to make other characters too.

Let the Fall Sewing Begin!

Fall is in full swing here in Germany! It is COLD. That's ok though, because that means I can start sewing fall clothes. 

I'm not finished with the Washi Tunic yet. I feel like there are a few more things I can try with it. This one is rayon and I added sleeves. Oh, and pockets! Even though the pockets are intended for the dress length I decided to see if I could make them work. I little resizing so they didn't hang too low, and it worked!

The pattern doesn't come with a sleeve (just the cap one) so I drafted this one. I used a combination of the School House Tunic sleeve and a bell sleeve from this shirt. This is my favorite one so far.

Fabric: Valorie Wells Novella Rayon
Pattern: Washi Tunic

I never blogged these pants, but they are part of my "PJs I can Wear to Work" series. *wink*

It's a nice stable knit with a pinstripe pattern. From a distance most people can't tell they are knit! But they are like wearing sweats to work. Love them!

Next up a blouse from Hilco's Knip Mode magazine. This is my third time to make this blouse, and my favorite version. I did the sleeve cuff in linen and then used the "J. Crew sleeve roll." That cracks me up. They have their own brand of sleeve roll!

Fabric: Blythe from Robert Kaufman
Pattern: Knip Mode blouse (no name)

I also made another knit pencil skirt. I'm loving these! So comfy and cute and easy! (not such a good hair day...)

The knit pencil skirt is just a tube! So easy. This one is one tremendously long tube folded in half. The single layer of knit wasn't thick enough so I doubled it, which meant I only had to hem the top since the bottom is folded. SO.EASY.

So those are my first fun outfits for this fall!

Progressive Dip Party

So if you follow me on Pinterest you might have been wondering what I've been up to with all the food pins! Tonight at church Rob and I organized a "progressive dip party." It was my night to do the snacks and I have a bit of a reputation for being the American who always brings the cupcakes and cake. So I thought I would surprise everyone with something completely different.

So each table got a different dip, and then every few minutes we rang a gong (yes I have a gong) and everyone had to change tables. It was more like musical chairs than a progressive dinner, but we thought calling it a progressive dip party was fun.

So of course I forgot to take my camera and got zero pictures. OH, I forgot to mention the most fun part. Our church is German, so there was only one other American family there. Everyone was from other countries, so all these were brand new to them! It really went awesome and everyone had a great time!

Ok, so since I have no pictures (shame on me) I am using the pictures that I pinned to show the dips. I wanted to share because they were all really yummy. Links go to the recipes.

7 Layer Bean Dip

A classic. We served it with Fritos scoops and blue corn tortilla chips.

Loaded Baked Potato Dip

This dip was pure genius. It's everything you put on a baked potato, and then you use potato chips as the potato. Delish.

Jalapeno Popper Dip

This was fantastic! This one got the most votes for favorite. I served this with Ritz crackers and butter crackers. 

Black Bean and Feta Dip

I had this for the first time about a year ago, or maybe longer. A customer brought it to a craft class. It is yummy. I have made this many times since then. It's great for a light snack on summer nights. I serve this one with Tostitos scoops.

Artichoke Dip

Whoever pinned this one just pinned the whole recipe! I used this recipe instead of the one on the artichoke can and it was yummy. I split it between two bread bowls to serve. One table got bread and one table got crackers. I made all the bread too. 

Dutch Oven Bread

I used the recipe above and have used it several times. I got a Dutch Oven for Christmas last year and it works really well. 

But I decided over the weekend I need to step up my bread making game. So I decided to dive in and begin a sourdough starter. I'm using this recipe. I'm two days in. We'll see how it goes when I have to remember to "feed" it during the week... I'm completely fascinated by the idea of growing my own yeast cultures. 

Ok, so like I said NONE of these are my pictures. But I wanted to share that all these recipes are winners. So if you are heading out to a party, I recommend any of them.