Big-hearted Blossom

I had to drop in today and tell you about one of my latest creations: "Big-hearted Blossom" (a quilted wall hanging or runner). Recently, my dear friend Mary was celebrating a birthday and I thought I would go through my fabric stash/scraps and pull her favorite colors to make a beautiful bloom as a gift for her special day. This project was aptly named after her HUGE and loving heart.

I am always looking for alternate ways to use my AccuQuilt GO! cutting dies, and that is exactly what I did with the GO! Orange Peel-4 1/2" (55455) in this project. Instead of using it for the popular traditional Orange Peel 4-Patch quilt block, I decided to use it for appliqué leaves along with a GO! Fantasy Flower. I purchased GO! Fantasy Flowers by Robbie Joy Eklow cutting die quite some time ago and I was excited to put it to good use!

The orange peel "leaves" were super easy - I just ironed fusible web on the back of eight assorted charm squares from the Sunkissed Collection by Sweetwater for Moda (the GO! Orange Peel-4½" die works perfectly for charm squares!). Next, I went through my fat quarter stash to find fabrics for the stem and flower petals. The stem was originally cut with the GO! Strip Cutter-1" (1/2" Finished), but I thought 1" was a bit wide, so I trimmed it down to a ¾" width. After seeing the approximate size of my Big-hearted Blossom, I cut a piece of neutral fabric (Natural Kona Cotton by Robert Kaufman) approximately 18"W x 35" H. I was able to easily center, fuse, and machine appliqué my flower on my neutral background - I used a blanket stitch for the machine appliqué, but a zigzag stitch, blind hem stitch, or satin stitch would work very nicely. Once the quilting was complete (I simply quilted about 1/4" out around the perimeter of each shape), I trimmed the piece to 15"W x 34" H and added a pretty floral binding that coordinated with the backing fabric.

The GO! Fantasy Flowers die is quite versatile with multiple fun petal shapes included. Plus, it was fun to dig through my fabrics...I just used what I had on hand, giving it a scrappy look. If you are anything like me, you have a scrap bin (or two or three) filled with fabulous floral colors perfect for this project.

This entire design truly came together in one afternoon and I was extremely pleased with the results! It could be used as a wall hanging or a runner...and additional flowers could easily be added...I can see it with a patchwork border too....hmm, I can certainly see more of these fabulous flowers in my future...

Visit the AccuQuilt blog later this week to read my guest blog post about this project...

Bunches of Bitty Blocks

Today, let's tackle fabric scraps...now, I know not all of you have this problem, but those of you with a fabric addiction (myself definitely included), will understand. My fabric scrap bin is extremely out of control - it's truly overflowing! You see, I have a large plastic bin under my fabric cutting table (very convenient - perhaps too convenient)...and every time I cut out a project, the scraps get tossed in the bin (because I just can't bring myself to part with any small pieces of fabric that I think I could possibly use for something in the future - we all know, I LOVE fabric!). Every once in a while, I go on a scrap busting binge and try to  minimize what is in the bucket...but truth be told, my deadline list has been so tight, it leaves little time for anything else. So, when Quiltmaker Magazine announced on their blog Quilty Pleasures that they would be having a low stress monthly project for Bitty Blocks, I just knew it would be perfect for working with my scraps. On the first Monday of each month during 2015, Quiltmaker Magazine will post a Bitty Block on their blog...the blocks will be approximately 3″ or 4″ square...and even better, this is a FREE project - you provide the materials, they provide the instructions. The plan is to make Bitty Blocks during the month and then sew them into a row....then the rows will be sewn together to create an unique throw-size sampler quilt made from bunches of Bitty Blocks. So, I am doing my best to fit this project into my schedule and tackle my excessive scrap pile...

To shame myself into dealing with my fabric scrap stash, here are a couple photos (yes, this mess treasure trove is contained under my cutting table!)....

I haven't quite decided if I am going to do the sampler throw-size quilt...OR, in typical Belinda fashion, change things up and do a monthly small project. Since I am in a Valentine mood, I decided to pull red, white, and pink print scraps from the bin...and, as you can see, I found plenty to work with.

The Bitty Block for January is a 3" Bow Tie Block (you can find the simple instructions here on the Quilty Pleasures blog)...yep, the finished size is a 3" square...but don't let that scare/worry you, the instructions make it super simple! For each finished block, you need just two contrasting fabrics...and you cut/piece squares:
Fabric A: two squares 2″ x 2″ and two squares 1 1/4″ x 1 1/4″
Fabric B: two squares 2″ x 2″
So we are talking about small scraps here...which I obviously have covered!

To make this project even more fun (if that is possible), I used my brand new GO! Big Electric Fabric Cutter to cut the 2" squares for the Bitty Bow Tie Blocks this month...yes, that is a GO! Big on my cutting table and I am just giddy - it is truly spectacular! I am going to sharing my GO! Big fabric cutting experiences with you...and I will be part of the GO! Big Blog Hop that starts next month (stay tuned, as I will have a project tutorial for you). As usual, I'm getting completely off track...more on all of that in the future - let's get back to the bitty blocks!

I made quick work of cutting all my blocks and stacked them in piles...then started chain piecing....

Following the super simple instructions for the January Bitty Block, I had a pile of 3" bow tie blocks made and pressed in no time - and they are SUPER CUTE!

I have a plan for these, but you will have to wait and see - join me here in a few days and I will share my finished bitty bow tie project with you! For now, why don't you try making a few Bitty Blocks yourself?...they are addicting! You can find all the details for the January Bitty Block here:
http://www.accuquilt.com/fabric-cutters-compared/go-big-fabric-cutter/go-big-electric-fabric-cutter-starter-set.html
...and if you have additional questions, Quiltmaker has done an additional blog post that gives some color ideas and things to consider when starting this monthly project:
http://www.quiltmaker.com/blogs/quiltypleasures/2015/01/qm-bitty-blocks-things-to-consider/
I hope you will try making some Bitty Blocks...and when you do, I hope you will share your photos and ideas with me...it's always more fun to sew and quilt with a friend!