Supernova Friendship Block Swap, Month 1

Posted on June 24, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Hi everyone,

Thanks to everyone who sent me well wishes on my little leg surgery from last week. I’m doing better each day and will be back to normal in time for the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show coming up soon!!

So Stephanie over at Late Night Quilter and Sandra over at One Million Stitches came up with a fun twist on the typical quilt-along. For those who missed out on Lee’s (from Freshly Pieced) Supernova original quilt-along, why not get together with a fellow blogging quilter and make a quilt top together??? Genius!

The idea is to meet a new quilter and exchange blocks over a 5 month period. Each month, you make 1 Supernova block for yourself and an identical one for your swap partner. After 5 months, each swap buddy will have 10 blocks, enough to complete a Supernova quilt top.

I posted to the original thread searching for a partner. Bam! I had found a great partner that same day. I think we are kindred spirits because not only do we both love piecing quilts, but we also love the great outdoors. My partner is Cindy from What’s One More Project.

Our first blocks were due to be sent out by June 15th, and I didn’t want to reveal pictures until we each received our swap block! We’re using Denyse Schmidt’s Ansonia line, with Cindy using the pink colorway, and I’m using the green/blue colorway.

Here is a look at the blocks that I made:

Supernova Friendship Blocks, Month 1

And here’s a look with one of my blocks next to the one that Cindy sent me. Aren’t they great together?

Supernova, Month 1 Blocks

Our next blocks are due to be sent by July 15th so I need to get started and finished before heading over to Sisters in early July!

Also linking up with Lee’s WIP Wednesday!

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Aurifil BOM, June’s Block

Posted on June 20, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Greetings everyone!

Well, I had a minor leg surgery this week, and am recovering slowly but surely. I have to limit my time spent sitting so I have only worked on 1 block this week. I hope to do some handwork on a quilt binding over the weekend.

I stitched together the June block for the Aurifil BOM called Chain Links by Heidi Pridemore. You can read more about Heidi and the Whimsical Workshop Studio on her blog.

For my Aurifil BOM, I’m using Kona Shadow as my neutral and my colors are all reds and blacks. I found a fabulous Japanese import at a local quilt shop in Portland called Cool Cottons several months ago. It features a black cat head – fabulous! It is from the Trefle line by Kokka. I plan to use the rest of my 1/2 yard piece to make a bag.

The other blacks and reds are pulled from my stash.

Here’s a look at June’s block:

Aurifil BOM, June Block, Chain Links

We’ve now completed 6 blocks:

Aurifil BOM, First 6 Months

I really am enjoying this color palette and stepping out of my comfort zone and really experimenting with colors and patterns.

Well, I’ll keep it short and will update the block soon with photos from the Supernova Friendship Block swap.

Happy quilting,
~Jennifer

Aviatrix Medallion, Border 4

Posted on June 16, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

I finished adding border 4 to my Aviatrix Medallion quilt. I love how it keeps growing and growing! We have just 2 more (larger) sized border to add to it over the next month or so.

You can follow along and make your own Aviatrix Medallion quilt. Just hop on over to Elizabeth’s blog and pattern shop, Oh Fransson.

I love the bright, cheerful solids and prints in my quilt. I can envision making the quilt again up until border 4 in a different color scheme and perhaps as a picnic quilt.

The difficult part now is that I can no longer attach the quilt top to my design wall for photographs. I’m using the floor and, curiously enough, no cat happened to wonder by during this picture!!

Here’s Aviatrix Medallion with border 4 added:

Aviatrix Medallion with Border 4 Added

I have my fingers in quite a few quilt pies at the moment so I’ll be blogging updates on a few of my projects later on this week.

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Bonnie Hunter Workshops!

Posted on June 11, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Happy Wednesday, quilty friends!

I had a fun-filled two days this week as I attended some Bonnie Hunter workshops sponsored by the NW Quilter’s guild. I took 2 vacation days from work and got to play with fabric, meet Bonnie in person (woo hoo!), and meet some fabulous quilters as well.

On Monday, we worked on the Cathedral Stars quilt blocks. This quilt is available as a free pattern on Bonnie’s blog here. For my blocks, I wanted my brights to be really bright so I selected different batiks to use.

Here’s a picture of me (in the blue), Bonnie in the middle, and my quilt blog friend Beth of Words and Stitches who I got to meet face-to-face!

Meeting Bonnie and Beth!

By the end of the class, I had 5 blocks completed:

Cathedral Stars Blocks

I attended Bonnie’s lecture and trunk show on Monday evening. So many beautiful quilts! I took pictures and hope to create a slideshow to upload soon.

On Tuesday, we worked on the Smith Mountain Morning quilt. This pattern is from Bonnie’s book, Scraps & Shirttails II. I used pinks and grays for my colors. Two of the students brought in this “Quiltzilla” dinosaur, and I took a picture of it next to the completed quilt. So fun!

Quiltzilla with Smith Mountain Morning

I got 3 blocks finished in this class – two star blocks and 1 log cabin block. The second picture is from my iPhone so it didn’t capture the colors too well, unfortunately.

Smith Mountain Morning Star Blocks

Smith Mountain Morning – 2 star blocks and 1 log cabin block

I highly recommend attending of one Bonnie’s workshops! You’ll learn great techniques, sew some fun blocks, and meet new friends. Now, I’m back at work wishing that I was stitching.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Celtic Solstice Finished!

Posted on June 7, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Whew – what a binding marathon for me this week! I finished the quilting and binding on my Celtic Solstice mystery quilt just in time for Bonnie’s classes in Portland this coming week. This quilt is designed by Bonnie Hunter over at Quiltville. As of June 1st, the pattern is no longer a freebie, but will included in a future publication.

For my quilt top, I kept to Bonnie’s suggested color palette of greens, oranges, yellows, and blues. The fabrics came from my stash with the exception of the green outer border and the blue backing.

I do have a couple of piecing boo-boos on this quilt top, but I’m really happy with how it turned out in the end. There are literally hundreds of individual fabric pieces comprising the blocks in this quilt!

The entire quilt is pieced and quilted with Aurifil 50 wt in Light Sand, #2000. The batting is Quilter’s Dream Poly in Mid Loft. I did free-motion quilting using a domestic machine.

Here is the quilt front with my little guy:

Ian standing in front of my finished Celtic Solstice quilt

The quilt front by itself:

Finished Celtic Solstice Quilt

I used a solid blue for the back and attached a label to the lower corner. The binding is the same green fabric as the outer border.

Back of Celtic Solstice

I’m so happy to have another quilt finished!

Happy quilting,
~Jennifer

Aviatrix Medallion Border 3 + Celtic Solstice (Almost Finished!)

Posted on June 4, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

This week, I’ve been catching up on a few quilty projects in the evenings.

First up is border 3 on this amazing Aviatrix Medallion quilt by Elizabeth Hartman. Each border keeps adding to the awesomeness of this quilt! I have a few errors and piecing mishaps in this border, but overall I’m pretty happy with it and using it as a great skill builder.

Here’s the quilt top with border 3:

Aviatrix Medallion with Border 3

Next, I finished quilting my Celtic Solstice top. I used an all over meandering stitch using a domestic machine and Aurifil thread #2000. After quilting, I placed it on the floor to measure for my binding. My cat had to come inspect!

Romeo inspects my Celtic Solstice quilt (before binding)

Celtic Solstice is designed by Bonnie Hunter and was a free pattern until June 1st this year. Since we’re past that date, the quilt instructions will be included in one of her future publications. If you missed out on this one, she will offer the next free mystery on her blog this fall.

I’m now feverishly working on hand stitching the backside of the binding before getting to see Bonnie in person next week in Portland for a class! Woo hoo!

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Aviatrix Medallion Border 2 + Oregon Coast

Posted on May 26, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Happy Memorial Day, everyone!

My Aviatrix Medallion quilt now has colorful border 2 added, and I’m working on stitching the units together for border 3 today. You can purchase the pattern and follow the quilt-along on Elizabeth’s blog, Oh Fransson.

Border 2 went together fairly quickly as the piecing was simple.

Aviatrix Medallion, Border 2 Added

Before I had the chance to add the sashing border to border 2, my cat inspectors arrived. I think my little grey kitty likes it!

Cats Inspect Aviatrix Medallion

My family and I took a nice day trip this holiday weekend to visit the Oregon Coast, specifically the Newport area to tour several tall ships, the Lady Washington and the Hawaiian Chieftain. The weather was gorgeous!

Tall Ship – the Lady Washington

Later that afternoon, the tall ships were scheduled to take ticketed passengers on special tours. We drove over to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse Natural Area to see if we could see the ships. Although we didn’t have binoculars, we did spot them out in the ocean.

Yaquina Head Natural Area with Tall Ships in the Distance

The Yaquina Head Lighthouse is a great place to visit with walking paths, tidepools, a visitor’s center, and the light itself. The fee is $7 per car. Near the lighthouse, we spotted 2 bald eagles on a tree. We saw them in flight carrying meals back to the tree. I wish I had a better camera lens for close-up photos!

Yaquina Head Lighthouse

We walked down to the tide pool area. Our 8-year-old loved this part of our trip! We saw quite a few critters in the tide pools.

Tide Pool Area and Agate Beach in the Distance

Tide pool critters

We ended our day trip by walking along Agate Beach, searching for treasures. We didn’t find any agates, but we had a fun time walking the tall ships sail out for a second excursion. The dog loved it too!

Dog on Agate Beach

Hope you had a safe and happy holiday weekend! Thanks to all who have served our country.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Blogger’s Quilt Festival 2014, Art Quilt Entry

Posted on May 23, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Happy Friday!

Many talented quilters are linking up some fabulous quilt projects this week over at Amy’s Blogger’s Quilt Festival for 2014.

At first, I was uncertain whether to add a project that I worked on this past year that has special meaning for me. I did blog about this art quilt earlier so long-time readers may recognize it. The art quilt is a fabric portrait of my very special cat and quilt inspector, Tiger. This is my first time entering the Blogger’s Quilt Festival, and I’m loving all the entries!

This quilt is my own design based on a photograph that I took of Tiger. I used different orange fabrics to imitate the orange stripes in his fur. I also accented the piece with free-motion quilting on my domestic machine. This quilting really accents his fur, the clouds in the sky, and the illusion of grass in the lower background.

I did some paper-piecing on the corner border blocks to draw the eye into the center of the quilt and to accent the colors in the cat’s fur.

I really love how this project turned out, and I now use a cropped image of the cat face as an avatar for various social media sites.

Here’s a view of the whole quilt:

Tiger, A Quilted Portrait

Here’s a closer look at the free-motion quilting:

Tiger, quilting close-up

And a look with Tiger himself!

Tiger inspects his quilt

Close-up view of a paper pieced corner:

Fan block

I hope you enjoyed my entry into the art quilt category. I really loved making this unique quilted portrait of my cat buddy!

You can pop on over to the festival here and look at all the wonderful entries in many categories in the festival and vote starting May 24th.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Vice Versa BOM, May Blocks

Posted on May 21, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

I have quite a few little projects that I’m working on right now – several BOMs, a quilt-along, and more. It’s definitely fun for me to work on multiple projects and different fabrics at the same time while watching these projects come to life, month after month.

I stitched together the May blocks this week for the Vice Versa BOM, hosted by Anne Marie at Gen X Quilters.

Here are my May blocks, side by side:

Vice Versa BOM, May Blocks

We now have 10 blocks in total completed:

Vice Versa BOM, 10 Blocks Completed

I’m doing the smaller, lap sized version with 9″ finished blocks. We’re over 1/2 way finished with this BOM so it’s exciting to see the blocks come together.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Aviatrix Medallion, Border 1 + More

Posted on May 16, 2014 by nwquiltedcat

Happy Friday, everyone!

It’s been a busy quilty week for me, in between work and the kiddo’s school schedule. I’ve made great progress on my Celtic Solstice top and should have all the borders added this weekend!

I also made a great antique sewing machine find at a local thrift store. I’ll take some pictures of my find and blog about it this weekend. So excited!

For the Aviatrix Quilt-along, our assignment this week is to add border 1. This border went together so nicely and took much less time than the gorgeous center block. Go check out all the details on Elizabeth’s blog, Oh Fransson.

This border has 32 HST units in 5 different neutral colors. Although my medallion colors are different, I did stick with the original neutrals as listed in the pattern. I’m using Aurifil Light Sand (#2000) for all the piecing.

Here’s a bit of blurry phone picture of the neatly trimmed HST blocks:

Trimmed HST Units in Neutrals

Here’s my center block now framed with border 1:

Aviatrix Medallion with Border 1

I just love how this quilt is coming together! We’ll work on border 2 next week.

Finally, have you heard about the Supernova Friendship Block Swap? You can find all the details on Stephanie’s blog, Late Night Quilter. I posted in the comments about needing a partner and found one within hours. I’m happy to say that I’m partnering up with Cindy of What’s One More Project. We’ve selected Denyse Schmidt’s Ansonia fabric line for our quilt.

Here are the 2 colorways. I’ll be working with the greens and Cindy will be working with the pinks.

Ansonia Fat Quarters in Green

Ansonia Fat Quarters in Pink

There is still time to hop aboard this fun swap. You’ll meet a new friend and have fun making quilt tops together. The first blocks are due June 15th.

”
Enjoy!
~Jennifer