I'm grounded

I have officially grounded myself. I am in big trouble.

See, I made up some blocks awhile back, based on no particular pattern. And then I put them together into a top a week ago, also based on no particular pattern. But it worked and I liked it.

And I pin-basted it.

And then I started quilting. I have not had the cojones to try FMQ yet, an I've been doing a lot of straight-ish line quilting. I decided to riff off of that for this project.

I unpicked it all twice, because it would bunch and twist and pucker.

It's the same pin-basting method I've used on smaller projects (this one is only about 40 x 60, so crib quilt sized), and it's worked perfectly for them. Just. NOT. For this one. At all. I can't even make myself show pictures of it, I'm so embarassed.

It's a mess. Every time I look at it I want to cry. Because I feel like I wasted time and materials and effort. And the thought of unpicking it all a third time makes me want to be sick. Seriously.

So I'm grounded. I'm back to square one, basics. I have no worries on my piecing, really. But I'm going to have to spend a nice long time and a few very simple projects getting to know more about quilting on my machine, because I'm not sure I can handle disappointing myself like that again.

Make me feel better. Does anyone else have a project like mine, one where the best of intentions went horribly, sickeningly awry?

Photo landslide post

I've been busy! HONEST! And I finally was home while the sun was shining, to show you that I can actually finish projects!



I was on vacation a week ago, and I sat down and watched scary movies and bound my table runner--now it's ready for the Thanksgiving table! It's 4 wonky square-in-a-square blocks from John's quilt-along round of the ORBC quilt alongs. It's bound in dark olive, and quilted in cream/amber variegated thread. I'm actually quite pleased with the whimsy of it.


Then there's this:

My Christmassy swap quilt for the 4SQS autumn group. It's getting mailed out to its recipient this week. YAY! I'm actually really happy with the result. Just the tiniest bits of wonk. There IS a story to this, but that would totally give away who the recipient is, so I'll hold back on that just a bit longer.




And I have coin sets!

These are going together for a friend's daughter's wedding quilt--less than 2 months, and I want this one off my plate well in advance of the big day. Especially since it takes me about a year to hand-tack binding to the back of a quilt... >.< Hoping to have the top finished this week. We'll see.

And then the mail-lady came today, and brought me presents!!


I finally caved and snagged a charm pack of MoMo's Odyssea, since I have such a love-affair with Wonderland. I thought maybe I'd use it for a baby quilt. And then, since I was thinking baby quilts (I have several friends who are either expecting or trying), I saw the charm pack of Love U by Deb Strain, who I LOVE, and snagged that, too.

And I timed it just right, and Fat Quarter Shop agreed to ship them with my prize from their give-away last month...

You ready for this?

I won one of the Moda Sampler Boxes! Here it is, all nice and tidy, before I get my grubby hands into it. 12 mini charm packs of 2.5" squares, for 12 of the new spring lines from Moda. Can I just tell you how freaking excited I was to win this? I giggled and squealed and flailed like a little kid.

And these will be perfect, since I just committed to another mini quilt swap. (We won't talk about the new bee I joined that starts in January, ok?)

I think I need an intervention. :D

Are you sick of me pointing yet?

Yup, that's right. Go check out Julie at Jaybird Quilts for a Spring Fever giveaway, complete with secksy market swag!

The coolest folks, and a giveaway!

If you're not familiar with The Block Party, you're missing something. Not only are they an amazing group of quilters, each in their own right, but what they're doing with the blog now is extraordinary. What was originally a site for their bee is now being opened to us all, with the intent of holding quilt-alongs AND helping quilters to network for more online bees. I'm in the throes of my first bee, and loving every second--it's a great opportunity to stretch and grow as a quilter. They've also put together a quilt-along flickr group over here, where you can see what everyone's doing as part of the quilt-alongs, but also it has threads where you can connect with other quilters interested in joining new bees.

Brilliant work, ladies!

(Oh, and to celebrate, they're holding a give-away with some FAB fabrics. Go check out the blog already!)