Drawing Board

This is the first drawn out idea for my challenge quilt. 

 It will obviously look very different in fabric.  My assigned three colors are apricot, orange, cerulean blue, and my neutral color of white. 

Let me paint you a picture through patterns.

This is a pattern that I have filed in the want to do pile.  This will be the back ground of the whole quilt.  My blue color will be the ocean water, my orange color will be my sandy beach, and my apricot will be my sky color.

Once I have enough of this pattern together it will turn on its corner to become the rolling waves of water.

All the following sampler blocks will be appliqued on.

I'm trying to decide what sampler block to make my sun out of.  

This is the one that is in my drawing.  I choose this one to change up the shapes of my sampler blocks.  

I also like the following for a sun.

The center star block is a version of my kite.

This block comes from the April in Paris quilt.  It is my beach umbrella.

My beach towel under my umbrella is a creation of my own.  It is a single blue crayon beach towel and is my tie into the challenge.

The blue piece at the top right corner is a hot air balloon.  The outside border of the quilt is made of pinwheel blocks of the three crayon colors.

Brian's Birthday Dinner

Due to a full weekend of soccer last weekend I was unable to take Brian out for his Birthday.  Tonight I arranged a small surprise Birthday celebration dinner for him at the local hibachi restaurant with 5 of our athletic training friends.  

Quilt Guild Homework Completed

I have everything that I need finished for the April Guild meeting.

My name tag.

Block of the month is flying geese blocks.  I don't know that I did this correct but I guess I'll find out.

These are my fabrics for the crayon challenge that is due in June.  Not all the fabrics are quilting cottons that I'm use to but that's why its called a challenge.

My apricot colored fabric.

 My Cerulean (blue) fabric.

My orange fabric.  Now I need some inspiration for a design.  

Birmingham Quilters Guild

I went to my first Birmingham Quilters Guild meeting this morning and had a good time.  I wasn't going to join today.  I was only going to see what it was like (see I've been nervous about attending and wasn't sure what it would be like.), but once I got inside and took a gander at everything I felt right at home.  So I joined and got involved.  I meet two wonderful ladies that explained a lot and helped me get set up with a few projects.  I now have some quilting homework to work on :)

This was show and tell time.  I only took a few pictures but there was much more on show.

This is a quilt made of old handkerchiefs as butterflies. 

 This picture doesn't show how pretty this quilt was in person.

This was my favorite of the morning.  

My new member packet.  Which has guild information and a member directory.

The guild has a library table each month where you can check out quilting novels, pattern books, quilting videos, etc.  I check out a quilting novel...and then I checked my bookcase tonight and realized I already own it.  Oh well I guess I'll just check it back in next month.

Guild information and Directory

My Birmingham Quilters Guild (BQG) pin!  

Marsha you would be proud of me...I signed up for a challenge quilt.  A challenge quilt is just that a challenge.  There are a set of rules that the quilt must be designed and created with and if the quilt doesn't meet the rules of the challenge then it is disqualified.  This is the Crayon Challenge.  I had to pick three crayons at random from a box without looking at my colors.  This is due in June.

These are my three colors I pulled from the box.  Apricot, Cerulean (blue), and orange.  I can also incorporate black and white or muslin, but the majority of the fabric must be the three colors of the crayons.  

I also signed up for the block of the month program (BOM).  This is a flying geese block.  The block is due next guild meeting in April and when I turn it in I get a raffle ticket.  All the blocks that are turned in are put in a bundle and a raffle ticket is drawn.  The winner of the raffle gets all the blocks everyone complete to make a quilt.  

This BOM kit came with fabric.  

The other thing I noticed in the guild was that everyone had a neat quilted name tag that they had made.  Every name tag I saw was different so now I'm trying to think of how I want to design my name tag.  I'll be sure to post pictures of the name tag and BOM once I finish it.

A Birthday Surprise

Brian's Birthday was Saturday and he had to work girls soccer all day.  He had to look at a 12 year old before she went to lunch and they got to talking about it being his birthday.  When she returned from lunch she brought him a red velvet cupcake.  Before she left she had asked him what his favorite cake was he told her red velvet cake.  So when we got home last night at 8:30 he shared it with me. 

New Sewing Machine!!

I recieved my new sewing machine on Friday!!  Brian and I opened it up on Friday night and played with it some!!  It pretty neat what it can do.

 "Oh great now I'll get no attention"

 Project/Quilting table.

Happy Birthday Brian!

Brian's Birthday was Saturday the 8th.  He is the big 32!  We haven't been able to celebrate due to work but next Saturday I'm taking him out for dinner.

Red Bike Coffee because he likes coffee and this one is a local company in Birmingham.

A beer brewing kit and beer cookbook because he keeps talking about it and I know he will never get it for himself.

Giada's new cookbook because he loves cookbooks.

Happy Birthday to Brian!!

Furry Friends