"Flow Zone" Block of the Month: February

I am full of pure joy today as I share with you the incredible February "Flow Zone" Block of the Month-Jeananne's Choice...

*Carrie Nation*

The instructions are found here on Quilter's Cache.

Ready, set, lock your seams! This block is just what we need to practice making those seams match perfectly. Jeananne, you did good! :)

Here's my February "Flow Zone" Block of the Month! 

I've made a group on Flickr so you can simply upload your photos to the group as soon as you finish. If you click on the link, you can see that I already put in the January blocks. Let me know if you need help or have any trouble! I can't wait to see everyone's February blocks! 

"Flow Zone" January Blocks!

I'm so proud of all of the January Blocks from the "Flow Zone" Block of the Month! So far, 8 people have made the January block and here are the finished products! We definitely are learning and talkin' shop. Jeananne even brought her cutting tools to give a quick tutorial and share her tips and techniques! 

Bettina's Block

Jeananne's Block

 

Carol's 1st Block

Carol's 2nd Block! Such an overachiever! ;-)

Karen's Block

Shannon's Block

Linda's Block

Chandler's Blocks

Pam's Blocks

I hope you can inquire from all of this *splendid block gorgeousness* that we can't wait for February's block...Jeananne's choice! Anyone out there who wants to join our learning community, it's never too late. If you finished a block, just send me a picture of your block and I can add it to this post!

"Flow Zone" Block of the Month: January

I'm so excited to share with you the January "Flow Zone" Block of the Month January Quilt Block...

*Antique Tile*

Fresh Lemon Quilts by Faith has a free tutorial for this block. Click here for the tutorial!

I also found this link to another free tutorial.  Click here for the other tutorial!

If you need some inspiration for how to layout the fabrics for your block, here is an image search on Google for 'antique tile quilt block'. Click here to see the results!

Do you need anything else? Let me know! I can give more detailed descriptions for certain steps if you are having trouble. Let's learn together.

Here is how my block turned out!  

I picked these fabrics from my Notting Hill by Joel Dewberry fat quarter bundle. Of all the prints, these felt like January to me! :)

We can't wait to see everyone's January Antique Tile Block! Comment below with any questions or celebrations! I know many of us are on twitter... #flowzoneBOTM

Also, please join in anytime! Here's the introduction post if you want more information.

Stay tuned for the February "Flow Zone" Block of the Month! It's Jeananne's choice!

"Flow Zone" Block of the Month Introduction

Up in the second floor of the administration building for Leander ISD, there are a bunch of passionate people working together to do their part to improve student learning. After working up in this office for over four years, I also realized another special thing...these kind people are seriously creative! In fact, one very special lady, Jeananne, is the reason I started quilting! She handed me a pattern and said, try it out. Those three little words are what I am now inviting you to do this year...

Here's how this is going to work:

• Jeananne and I, along with Carol, Shannon, Karen B. and Laura are going to host a "Flow Zone" Block of the Month for any LISD peeps...past and present! We picked "Flow Zone" because it is the nickname for our office space! No, we won't be making quilt blocks during work time...this is purely a night and weekend *on your own time* community building experience!
• Each month a different host (named above) will design and/or pick their own block for the quilt. I'll post a link to every block on this blog tab so you can join in on the fun! You don't have to be a host to participate! By the end of the year, you will have 12 blocks to be made into a quilt!
• Here are the people who will be selecting blocks each month:
• January-Bettina
  February-Jeananne
  March-Carol
  April-Karen
  May-Laura
  June-Shannon
  July-Carol
  August-Bettina
  September-Jeananne
  October-Karen
  November-Shannon
  December-Laura
• Each block will be 12 1/2 inches squared.
• Materials Needed: 12 1/2inch square ruler (for squaring up your blocks), rotary cutter, cutting mat, 6 x 24 inch ruler, basic sewing supplies (machine, thread, seam ripper, scissors, etc.)
• Fabric needed: It's hard to say, but we recommend 1-2 yards of 3 or more of your favorite print fabrics and a few yards of a solid fabric that matches OR a stack of coordinating fat quarters and a few yards of a solid fabric that matches. This doesn't include the back or binding, but you could buy extras for that or you could just make those scrappy.  Here's what I am using:

A stack of fat quarters from Notting Hill by Joel Dewberry

Here's another photo...I also have a few yards of a solid white fabric to match! Comment below to share what fabric you are using or if you have other suggestions.

• Jeananne recommends before beginning: wash your fabric, then iron with a little spray starch (this gives your fabric some body and makes for nicer cutting and sewing)...if you have already cut your pieces for your first block without this step, it's ok...on your future blocks, start with this and see if you notice a difference. 

I will be posting the first block tomorrow just in time for the weekend! ;-) From there, we will post a new block the 1st week of every month. In December, I will link instructions for finishing off the quilt (making a quilt sandwich, binding, etc). We will definitely end the event with a show off your quilt Christmas party! For long distance folks, we will be doing FaceTime at the party!

Okay! We look forward to having fun and learning with each other this year! *2013* We hope you'll join us and spread the word to anyone who might be interested! :)

Come on Ride the Train!

Or at least hang out with Thomas the Train and his friends! This beautiful, gorgeous quilt is specially made for my dear cousin's little girl, Kendall. She absolutely adores Thomas the Train, but if you know Thomas the Train, he is blue and red! Big problem here...Kendall loves pink! 

The front of the quilt has a variety of Thomas the Train fabrics mixed in with a neutral gray to make the pink and red fabrics stand out. At least that's a tip I just learned in my Craftsy class by Elizabeth Hartman. The binding is mainly a bright pink with a few pieces of the coordinating red fabrics from the front.

The quilt back is made of a bright pink minky fabric. When making the quilt sandwich, I used batting so this quilt is extra snuggly for the winter!

Process photo! Keeping my rows organized for sewing each row.

Of course, I quilted squiggly train tracks throughout the entire quilt with bright pink thread. Notice the Thomas the Train fabric as well...it's so cute! 

Here is a better picture of how it looks with the super soft-snuggly-let me cuddle with Thomas-minky back fabric. I thought that using the minky fabric would be extra hard to quilt, but it was not a problem...it just took time. I also love the train tracks. If I was a kid again, I would get out my toy trains and play all over the back of this quilt! Overall, I hope that sweet Kendall loves it! :)

Grandma's Charm Square Quilt

In the quest to make my grandmother something for Christmas, another Elizabeth Hartman pattern, the Charm Squares Baby Quilt Pattern, caught my eye. My grandmother is not a baby, but she certainly does not need a large quilt when she is resting on her new couch! For her, my mother and I thought this would be the perfect quilt.

Front

Back

During my mother's visit last week, little did she know that we would be having so much fun in my new sewing room! She assisted me in selecting, cutting and organizing the fabric. A few of the fabrics are from Salt Water by Tula Pink and one of them is from Field Study by Anna Maria Horner...if I remember correctly. I'm not a fabric expert by any means, but I can definitely understand how buying fabric could be an addiction!

I sketched out the plan for the back over morning coffee!

I quilted a personal note on the bottom, but I almost wish I would have just quilted the entire thing with wavy lines. Oh well, Grandma will probably love the note more anyway!

My favorite part in making this quilt was my mother right by my side experiencing the entire quilt-making process. She did all of the pressing while I did the sewing. Together, we created not only a quilt but memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you, Mama, for all of your hard work! This quilt was a team effort!

Mama's New Wave Quilt

Happy New Year! I thought I would start this year off with a blog post about the quilt I made for my mother. The quilt top is the New Wave Quilt Pattern by Elizabeth Hartman. I followed it mostly, but had to work with the fabric selection I purchased with my mom the last time I traveled to Illinois. So, I couldn't use 12 different fabrics for the quilt top. All in all, I think it turned out beautiful!

This quilt was made for my mother's bedroom and currently lives on her bed. It coordinates with her other bedding quite nicely. A little tricky to see, but the fabric is full of little insects...including my mother's favorite: the dragonfly! 

Designing the quilt back turned out to be a perfect math challenge for my time off! This collection of fabric had some panels that I cut apart and sewed back together and combined with some other pieces from the front. With my other leftover fabric, I'm going to make Mom a few pillowcases!

Here's my blueprint for the quilt back...lots of math and no calculator just to stay on my toes! 

My first time to free-motion quilt an entire quilt! 

 I sewed Mama a little message at the bottom. This photo shows my name, year and a little heart I stitched in there for good luck!

Here is my mother opening the quilt and she adored it! We had a wonderful time visiting...only wish she could have stayed longer!

I took one last photo before the quilt left my house. Luckily, it's in excellent hands! :)