Giveaway Day!

Today (and the rest of this week) is SewMamaSew's Giveaway Day.  Lucky you.  And me. ;)  You have a chance to win fabulous sewing-related prizes, and learn about blogs or Instagram feeds you might be missing out on... and I get to meet some of you!

I'm giving away the current issue of Modern Patchwork magazine, plus a kit (fabric and batting) to make the Arrow Sketchbook Cover featured inside.  All you'll need to provide is a bit of sewing time and a sketchbook!

Here's what you could win:

• The Spring 2015 issue of Modern Patchwork
• One (almost) half yard of Comma News Print fabric by Zen Chic in Slate Gray  (This is not the same fabric shown in the finished sketchbook, but will look just as fabulous -- if not more!)
• Three different solid fabrics for piecing the arrows (Kona colors: Pomegranite, Cactus, and Peacock)
• One fat quarter of Kona Turquoise for the lining
• One fat quarter of cotton flannel batting

This issue of Modern Patchwork includes my full instructions for making the Arrow Sketchbook Cover and I hope you'll enjoy making your own!  **The actual sketchbook cover pictured here will not be included in the package.**

Plus, look at all the other fabulous projects you could make from the magazine!!

To enter, please leave a comment letting me know what your favorite thing to sew is.  Do you like quilting, or sewing garments, bags, soft toys... or something else??  I'd love to know!

You have from now until Sunday, May 10, at 5:00 pm PST to enter.  After that, I'll randomly choose one winner.  

Please be sure I have a way to contact you if you're a winner!  If your email is not connected to your blogger profile, please include it in your comment.

I'm not requiring any extra hoops to enter, but I'd be absolutely flattered if you choose to follow me through Bloglovin' or on Instagram.  Thanks, and good luck!!

A Quilt for QuiltCon

I created Deconstructed Lonestar specifically for QuiltCon 2015, the international conference and show by and for The Modern Quilt Guild.

I was inspired by a traditional lone star quilt my mom made for me when I was in my twenties, long before I was interested in quilting myself.  I was looking at it recently and thinking about how striking the pattern is and how it might look with a more modern spin.  I was also inspired by this and this and this and this, all modern versions of the lone star pattern.  I then started to think about the idea of the star breaking off and exploding into space.  The concept of combining a traditional pattern with current fabrics and improvisational piecing resonated with me.  I drew up a basic star pattern, offset it towards a lower corner, and starting sketching over it with colored pencil.

I decided early on to use a cool palette of blues and greens for the star, and that I wanted those colors to pop against a darker background.  I was looking for more depth and interest in the negative space than I thought I could achieve with a solid gray.  I also wanted the construction of the piecing to be obvious, as I feel like that is a big part of what makes the lone star pattern so beautiful.  Since I knew it would be impossible to find assorted dark gray prints that worked together, it became clear that I should overdye the background fabrics myself, something I hadn't done before.  Because (ha!) why would I make the process easy??!  In the end, after collecting a variety of black-on-white prints, and learning as much as I could from everyone I know who had ever dyed fabric, I set to work.  It took two tries -- you can see the first (too light) version on the left and the final version on the right.

You can see my partially completed sketch for the design in the upper left corner of the photo above.  That's as far as I got with planning out the design.  I laid out the "shards" of the broken star as I went, until it looked right.

Here it is on the floor on my living room, almost complete!  I pieced the star in somewhat random strips that I then cut at a 45-degree angle, similar to this tutorial.  The broken points of the star are pieced in the same manner, but with more carefully placed strips of the gray fabric added, so those parts became negative space and faded into the background.

The quilting was influenced by a "Recipe for Spiraling" in the book Pamphlet Architecture 27:  Tooling, shown above.  I'm not adept at free motion quilting and was looking for a dynamic quilting design that I could quilt myself with a walking foot.  The authors of the book write that "Spiraling produces a shape unlike any other because it is seldom experienced as geometry, but rather as energy."  Seemed perfect to me.  You can see that I sketched the beginning of the spiral on the quilt top.  Thankfully, once it got big enough, I was able to use the edge of the walking foot to continue the shape until it was complete.
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I love how the gray fabrics have a similar tone (or is it shade?), yet are still distinct.  I really pushed myself with this quilt and learned so much in the making of it.  It also reinforced for me how much I enjoy the process of design.  I finished binding and photographing the quilt the day submissions were due for the QuiltCon show, and was thrilled to find out a few weeks later that it was accepted into the show!

Then, on the first morning of QuiltCon, my quilt was awarded second place in the Modern Traditionalism category.  I'm still a little in shock!  Really, it was incredible just to see my quilt in the show.  You can see all of the amazing winning quilts in this post on The Modern Quilt Guild blog.  So many other fabulous quilts were on display, too.  If you're on Instagram, check out #quiltsofquiltcon or #quiltcon2015 to see many of them.  [The quilt on the left, above, is Fly Away by Heather Jones.]

Floating Triangles Bag

I'm a bit late with this announcement, but you can find my pattern for this Floating Triangles bag in the Winter 2015 issue of Modern Patchwork.  (You should still be able to find the issue on newsstands.  But if not, you can purchase a copy from the Interweave store.)

I really enjoyed designing this bright and colorful cross-body bag.  The angled front pocket is essentially a tiny quilt -- and a fun study in half square triangles.  The bag measures about 10-inches wide by 13-inches tall, and the strap is adjustable up to 53-inches long.

Modern Patchwork is one of my favorite quilty/sewing magazines, and, as usual, there are some great quilts and smaller projects in this particular issue.  I'm thrilled to be sharing the pages with some of my maker/designer idols, including Rashida Coleman-Hale (Her Modern Hexies quilt is gorgeous!) and Malka Dubrawsky (Don't you think her Mod Ovals Quilt makes a beautiful cover photo?).

{top right photo courtesy of Interweave}

Speaking of cover photos (and publications), I'm super excited that my Above the Curve table runner made it on the cover of the Spring issue of Stitch!!  What an honor... and a surprise!  I haven't received my physical copy yet.  When I do, I'll be sure to post more about that design, and the inspiration behind it.

{photo courtesy of Interweave}

And, if you sew your own version of the Floating Triangles bag, or any of my patterns, I would LOVE to see it!  Tag me on Instagram (@formwork), post a comment here, or email me to let me know.  Thanks so much!

My Aragon bag

Back in the beginning of February, I took a workshop with Sara Lawson of Sew Sweetness and made this lovely bag.  The workshop was an all-day event, organized by the Chicago Modern Quilt Guild, a group which I am so happy to have joined about a year ago.  Many of us braved (yet another!) snowstorm that day, to gather and sew and eat and sew and chat and sew... as Sara expertly and patiently walked us through the making of her Aragon bag.

The Aragon bag was designed as a diaper bag, but it would also make a great carry-on tote.  I'll be using mine as a "retreat" bag to carry fabric and sewing supplies.  The thing has nine pockets (!) in all, which are perfect for stashing rotary cutters, rulers, thread, elastic, zippers, and more.  And the interior is easily large enough to hold several yards of fabric, as well as some in-progress projects!  If you're interested, you can find out more about the Aragon bag in Sara's pattern shop.

I enjoy making bags, but I'm not sure I would have attempted one this complex without the workshop.  Despite having done a lot of prep work beforehand and sewing all day (okay, so maybe I should have been talking less...remember the part about chatting?!), I still hadn't completely finished the bag at the end of the workshop.  Another hour or so of focused work at home, though, and it was done!

I used fabrics from Jeni Baker's Nordika collection for the outer bag and side pockets, with a teal polka-dot print from Joann's for the interior, top, and shoulder straps.

I cut out the pattern pieces using the cute little pattern weights my mother-in-law made for me for Christmas.   No more cans from the cupboard as pattern weights for me!  I stuck to the pattern for the most part, with just a few (three, in fact) modifications.
1) I changed the shape of the front flap pocket to be more rectangular, but still with rounded bottom corners (see top photo).  The pocket in the pattern is more of a semi-circle.  I liked how the shape of my revised pocket was more connected to the overall shape of the bag, but, more importantly, I just wanted to be able to fit more stuff in it!
2) I made the shoulder straps a few inches longer, because I'm tall and wanted the bag to hit my hips, not my waist, when I carry it.
3) I used a different interfacing than the pattern called for -- Pellon Peltex 71 (an ultra-firm fusible stabilizer) instead of the recommended Soft and Stable foam interfacing.

If you ever have a chance to take a class from Sara, I would highly recommend it.  She was a great teacher, was very well prepared to walk us through each step, and was patient and personable.  Plus, you'll likely end up with an amazing new bag as a result!!

A Kitchen Stitches winner!!

The winner of my giveaway of the new Kitchen Stitches book is.... (drumroll, please...) Debbie!!!, who said, "Looks like a very useful book! Thanks."  I think you'll find that it truly is, Debbie!

You can read more about the book, and my contribution to it, here.

And if you didn't win, but would still like a copy of the book, you can always purchase a copy at your local bookstore, in the Martingale shop or through Amazon.

Happy stitching!

Double-Handed Pot Holder from Kitchen Stitches (and a giveaway!)

Here's a clue to which project I chose to stitch up for this week's Kitchen Stitches blog hop.  (Hint: Look in the upper left corner of this photo.)  **Also, I'm giving away a Kitchen Stitches book to one lucky winner today!  Info at the very bottom of this post.**

Yes, for several reasons, I decided to make the Double-Handed Pot Holder by Natalie Barnes.  First, I don't think it's possible to have too many pot holders... and I didn't yet have this double-handed type.  I also liked the opportunity this project provided to mix lots of print and solid fabrics, plus the pot holder is constructed using the quilt-as-you-go method, a technique I've been wanting to try.

Working with a Valetine's Day theme, I chose pink and red fabrics to start.  Then I added some oranges (My hands just naturally reach for them.  I can't really help it!).  I brought in a bright blue and citrus-y green, as well, to keep it from being too monochrome.  The radical part is the hot pink solid that I chose for the backing.  I'm not usually a pink person, but it just seemed right for this project.

The instructions were easy to follow, with clear diagrams.  The quilt-as-you-go technique was painless and quick.  Since I don't usually sew with hot pink and therefore didn't have any thread to match the backing, I decided to use a bright orange (I know, I know.) thread in the bobbin to provide a fun contrast with the pink.  For the top thread, I used an off-white.  The upper left photo shows the two thread colors.

Due to my own novice-ness at hand sewing bindings, and the many layers involved, I managed to stab myself several times with my needle during the process.  Twice, in fact, I had to spot clean drops of blood off the pot holder!!  Eventually, though, I got the hang of it, and the rest of the binding attachment went smoothly.  The many band-aids on my fingers may have also helped protect them (and the pot holder) from further injury!

Photo courtesy of Martingale Press.

Here's Natalie's lovely version from the book.  I love the idea of the casserole cozy, too.  That's on my future "to do" list.  I really think this is a wonderful book full of great gift ideas or a nice way to add some color and cheer to your own home.

Don't forget to follow along this week with all of the bloggers (many of them book contributors) participating this week:

2/3  Heather at The Sewing Loft
2/4  Becky at the Patchwork Posse and  Kim at My Go-Go life
2/5  Amy at FormWork Design and  Deby at So Sew Easy
2/6  Rebecca at Ruby Blue Quilts  and Jackie at Jabot Quilts
2/7  Melissa at Happy Melissa Quilting
2/8  Kari at Fresh Cut Quilts

Now, the giveaway -- thanks for being patient!  Simply leave a comment below for a chance to win one copy of Kitchen Stitches.  The giveaway is open until 5pm CST on Saturday, February 8, when I'll randomly choose a winner.  Please make sure your email is included in your comment, especially if it's not connected to your Blogger profile.

Good luck!

More Kitchen Stitches stitching

Getting this out a little late in the day... but I wanted to share some info about a fun little Kitchen Stitches blog hop I'm participating in this week.  Several of the book's contributing designers are stitching up projects from Kitchen Stitches -- with a Valentine's theme -- to share.  The fun twist is that we've chosen other projects in the book to sew, rather than our own.  I finished mine up late this afternoon, and will show and tell on Wednesday.  Can you guess from this snapshot of my work table just which project I made?

Here's the line up of participants this week.  Be sure to take a peek each day at what these lovely ladies have been up to.  I'm truly flattered to be in the company of such great designers!

2/3  Heather at The Sewing Loft
2/4  Becky at the Patchwork Posse and  Kim at My Go-Go life
2/5  Amy at FormWork Design and  Deby at So Sew Easy
2/6  Rebecca at Ruby Blue Quilts  and Jackie at Jabot Quilts
2/7  Melissa at Happy Melissa Quilting
2/8  Kari at Fresh Cut Quilts

And here's one more glance at some of the projects in the book.  I just love all that color!

Photo courtesy of Martingale Press.