Light Show: December Block of the Month

Posted on December 11, 2017December 11, 2017 by thenotsodramaticlifeadmin / Posted in 2017 Block of the Month, Classes, Quilting / Leave a comment

The block of the month I have been doing with Dabble and Stitch in Columbus, Ohio has been humming along, and we are now at the final block. This design is inspired by the holiday light shows that appear this time of year, and focuses on the displays at the Columbus Zoo.

This block is based on a 12 sided polygon, which is a reflection of the shape of the building which houses the historic carousel located on the zoo grounds. The green corners creating this shape also create the suggestion of the center of an evergreen wreath.

At the center of the zoo grounds there is a lake that is center stage to a musical choreographed light show with trees of lights floating on the water. The blue fabric represents both the water of the lake and the night sky. Many of the light designs constructing the trees consist of vertical stripes which are shown in the orange and violet triangles.

The red and white candy cane stripe placed diagonally across the block is inspired by the lights wrapping the posts of a bridge leading to one of the buildings.

This block is fairly easy foundation paper piecing and is done in four sections. I absolutely love how it looks when these blocks are put together. They create an awesome secondary pattern with stars and diagonal stripes.

I started experimenting with some different color schemes, and I love this one that adds an extra color to the star points!

This pattern is available through Dabble and Stitch.

Improv Trees

Posted on December 3, 2017December 4, 2017 by thenotsodramaticlifeadmin / Posted in Classes, Quilting, Works In Progress (WIP) / 1 Comment

This weekend I had the opportunity to teach my first improvisational piecing class at Dabble and Stitch in Columbus, Ohio. And it happened to be one of my all-time favorite improv inspirations- winter trees! Talk about being perfect for this time of year! In the sample piece I used a lot of bright colors.

I love using unexpected fabrics for the trees, especially irregular stripes or splotches. We spent the first part of class selecting fabrics, and the students made fabulous selections! Here are a couple student projects. I tend to get pretty wrapped up in the class itself and forget to take photos, but I can assure you that there was a lot of awesomeness going on!

For the tree fabric strips she selected a print of trees! Don’t you love how the print looks all cut up?

Here is a finished top. The tree fabric used in this one was a popular choice and looked terrific with a bunch of different backgrounds.

I really hope I have the chance to teach this class again! If you would like to see another example and read more about the process, please check out another improv trees mini quilt I did awhile ago.

Building Bridges: January BOM

Posted on January 8, 2017January 14, 2017 by thenotsodramaticlifeadmin / Posted in 2017 Block of the Month, Classes, Quilting Community / 3 Comments

2017 is going to be an exciting quilting year, and one of the projects I am most excited for is working with a local shop, Dabble and Stitch, on a block of the month program. Throughout the year we will “travel” in and around Columbus, Ohio, creating blocks that are designed to represent the neighborhoods that make up the larger community.

We are starting the year with the block, Building Bridges, which is inspired by the Lane Avenue Bridge that crosses the Olentangy River on the Ohio State University Campus.

Bridges are more than physical structures- they create vibrant communities in areas that a natural divide could easily separate people into different social, economic, and cultural districts. The location of this bridge on a university campus is particularly notable since academic institutions bring people from around the world to live and study together.

As a cable stayed suspension bridge, the structure has a strong, dynamic lines that make it a notable architectural feature of the area. The medallions on the bridge are super eye catching. (I travel by this bridge each time I go to Dabble and Stitch, and I secretly hope to have to stop at the light leading up to it so I can stare for a minute!)

When designing this series of blocks, I want to make them representative, but in an abstract manner- sort of like how a log cabin quilt block abstractly represents the building of an actual log cabin. My hope is that people both in and outside of Columbus find these designs both attractive and inspiring.

Each section of the Building Bridges Block represents an aspect of the Lane Avenue bridge. The Stripes on one half of the block represent the sidewalks and street, the Olentangy River, and the bright red center of the decorative medallions. There are three pairs of cable lines to represent the three bridges that have stood at this location.

This block is even more exciting when it is created in multiples. Every other block is constructed as a mirror image of the original, and a couple fabric placements alter position to create a sense of depth. When a set of four blocks come together, they form a full square which symbolizes different communities coming together as one.

The table topper version is comprised of four blocks.

16 blocks make up the baby or wall quilt.

You will need 48 blocks to construct the Twin sized version.

This pattern is available through Dabble and Stitch and includes instructions for a single block as well as the table topper, baby/wall quilt, and the twin sized version. I am also very excited to be doing a class on this block next Sunday, January 15, so I hope to see some of you there!

I’m linking this post up with Show Off Saturday at Sew Can She.

The Collection Quilt (Round 2!)

Posted on January 3, 2017 by thenotsodramaticlifeadmin / Posted in Classes, Finished Quilts, Quilting, Quilting Community / Leave a comment

Last year, I was thrilled to teach Carolyn Friedlander‘s Collection Quilt through a local quilt shop, Sew to Speak. The first version I made as a class sample is similar to the overall aesthetic that was used in the original design, so when I constructed a second version to use for demonstration purposes, I thought it would be fun to do something entirely different. This is my pink-loving-little-girl version!

My color palette this time around was mostly pinks and oranges with some red and violet and shots of green.

Some fussy cutting added a bit of whimsy to the overall aesthetic.

The backing is the same fun unicorn fabric that appears in the front in a different color way.

This quilt is the perfect way to learn needle turn appliqué, and I am excited to be teaching it again this year! Each month we will do a block that build on the skills covered in previous meetings. If you are interested in joining the class, please contact Sew to Speak in Worthington, Ohio. This technique opens up a whole new range of quilting designs!

Quilt Stats

Title: The Collection Quilt (Pattern by Carolyn Friedlander)

Size: 40.5″ x 51.5″

Techniques: Needle turn appliqué, machine piecing

Quilting: Computerized linear edge to edge pattern (my original design) done on an A-1 Elite Longarm

Fabric: Assorted quilt shop quality, 100% cotton fabrics

Batting: Hobbs 80/20

Thread: Applique and piecing done with neutral and coordinating Gutermann Mara 100, Quilted with 50wt cotton Aurifil

Binding: Striped bias binding, machine stitched to the front, hand finished on the back.

This and That: March Edition

Posted on March 27, 2016 by thenotsodramaticlifeadmin / Posted in Quilt Shows, Quilting, Quilting Community, Works In Progress (WIP) / 2 Comments

There has been so much happening in my quilt-y world lately, but not everything needs its own post, so I’m combining a bunch of cool stuff into a single post!

Quilt Shows

I had a wonderful time at QuiltCon and it was just as exciting to have my quilt returned to me the following week.

The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts hanging at QuiltCon

Next up in quilt shows: I have THREE quilts heading to the American Quilter’s Society Show in Paducah this Spring! I was stunned and thrilled to receive three positive notifications, and I am eagerly awaiting the show.

Quilts that are heading to AQS Paducah

The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts will continue its show tour in the Large Wall Quilt: Modern category, and will be joined by both Can You See (m)E Now? in the Small Wall Quilt: Pictorial category and Rainbow Rotary in the Miniature category. Even more exciting than having my quilts in the show is seeing that these, as well as several other quilts in the modern aesthetic are being accepted into the show in categories stretching well beyond the modern category. It is fabulous to see wonderful, long established shows, embrace the differences in the quilt world.

The Collection Quilt Class

The Collection Quilt block of the month classes I have been teaching at Sew to Speak in Columbus, Ohio have been going well, and it is so much fun to work through this delightful quilt with such a wonderful group of women. I have been making a version of this quilt that is perfect for a princess loving little girl. The first month’s block features this cute frog print.

Section One of the Collection Quilt

Block two is especially fun due to the opportunities to incorporate lots of fussy cutting!

Section Two of The Collection Quilt

If you are in the Columbus area, and would like to join the class, we would love to have you! There is still plenty of time to learn the technique and come out of the class with a fantastic quilt. Please contact Sew to Speak to get signed up!

Quilting Bee

I am in my first block bee this year with The Columbus Modern Quilters. I signed up for the six month version since this is my first time, and I never know exactly where or how busy I’ll be in a year.

In January our queen selected the Wanta Fanta block, and I was thrilled by how quickly it went together.

January Bee Blocks

This month we are making the same block for another queen, and I am even more excited to see how both of these quilts go together.

March Bee Blocks

February was my month, and everyone made a filmstrip block that I will be incorporating into a border of a medallion quilt. I just love the blocks that everyone brought- Aren’t they awesome?! I have the free pattern available on Craftsy if you are interested in making some filmstrip blocks of your own.

Filmstrip Bee Blocks

A Win

Have you been participating in One Monthly Goal hosted by Red Letter Quilts? It is great for me to be able to set a single goal for the month, because my quarterly lists are ridiculous- they help me keep an overview of large goals, but all of those goals are never getting finished in a single quarter 😉

My February goal came with an added bonus: when names were drawn from the completion link-up, mine was selected!

This lovely bundle of fabric arrived a few days ago, and I can’t thank Heidi of Red Letter Quilts enough for hosting this event every month and supplying lovely fabric for a prize!

Block Hop

Last year I had a great time participating in the New Blogger’s Block Hop, so when the opportunity arose to participate in another New Block Blog Hop, I jumped at the chance. Paintbrush Studios sent out fabric to each blogger in the Ocean Sunrise Palette which was curated by our wonderful hosts.

You’ll want to mark your calendars for March 28-30 to stop by and see all of the wonderful new block patterns that are being given to you by more than three dozen bloggers! What makes this project even better is that all of the blocks created for this blog hop are collected by our hosts to make into some gorgeous charity quilts.

Publication

For the first time I have a quilt design making an appearance in the pattern section of a magazine. If you’re interested in making this Italicized Hashtag Quilt, make sure you check it out in Generation Q. I’ll be writing more about this quilt soon!

Spring Issue of Generation Q Magazine