Do. Good Stitches May 2011 Quilt

I'm a member of the "Love" circle of the do. Good Stitches bee over at flickr.  (There's a link to our bee in my sidebar to the right.)  May was my month to finish the quilt and I decided to let everyone choose a color and do whatever type of 12" finished block they liked. It was so exciting to see the blocks arrive!

I tried numerous arrangements for this quilt, but eventually decided on random. I like the way it turned out.  The binding is a diagonally printed black and white stripe and I used a bright floral vintage sheet for the back.

There's something special to me personally about this quilt too.  It's the first quilt I've quilted on a long arm machine. My new friend, Angela of The Jilted Quilt, rents time on her wonderful long arm machine.  She donated the time for me to quilt this charity quilt and it was so much fun to learn and play with the long arm. Thanks, Angela!

Long arm quilting was very relaxing.  It was so easy to get into "the zone" and just go with it.  Next time, I think I'll take my headphones and quilt to music.  I was disappointed when I finished.  I wanted to keep going!  (I just have to add that Ara Jane went over the top with those gorgeous pink hexies.  See a close-up at flickr.)

So, a big thank you to the do. Good Stitches "Love" ladies.  I'll get this quilt packed up and shipped to Wrap Them in Love right away.

Farmer's Wife on the Fourth

★ Happy Independence Day! ★

Today is a great day to thank a veteran and count our blessings!

I've worked on a number of sewing projects today, but I think crossing the Cut Glass Dish (#26) off my Farmer's Wife Sampler block list feels like my biggest accomplishment. This was my second go at this block. The first time, I tried using Moda crossweave as one of the fabrics in those 1" HSTs above.  I couldn't work with the bulk, so I tried again and the second time's a charm.

I am pleased with my points, but I was extremely disappointed when I put my block on the wall and stepped back to discover that those stupid dots not being straight makes my triangles look crooked! Ugh! That's what I get from trying to cut my fabric on the straight of grain rather than with the print.  It does create some nice movement and goodness knows I'm not redoing it.

The other two blocks I added are #41 Friendship Star (red star on the left) and #108 Windmill (gold and blue).  I love the way these are coming together.  It's a really fun project!  Are you working on a Farmer's Wife Sampler?