Toes in the Sand Completed + Giveaway Winners

Posted on November 24, 2014 by thequiltedcat

Happy Monday, quilting friends!

I’m so happy that it is a short work week due to the Thanksgiving holiday! I hope to get some extra sewing time in over the long holiday weekend.

Recently, I finished a long BOM project called Toes in the Sand by Jaybird Quilts. I started this project back in April 2013! I’ve had the individual blocks assembled for a while, but finally finished the top and quilting recently.

My hubby and I decided to celebrate our 14th anniversary by going to the Oregon coast for a weekend. We stayed in Seaside and really lucked out with the weather. It was clear, sunny, and not too breezy with a high of about 48 degrees. I knew that my Toes in the Sand quilt had to come along for some beach photography!

Here’s a look at the finished project, front and back sides:

Toes in the Sand – Found some more triangle shapes in the swing set

Toes in the Sand Completed Quilt, Seaside, Oregon

Backing with My “sidekick” Brutus

I free-motion quilted Toes in the Sand using an Aurifil cream thread in 50 wt and an all-over “wonky triangles” pattern that I made up as I went along. I think it accents the blocks perfectly without overwhelming them. My backing is made from a few left-over scraps of PB&J fabric by Moda along with larger pieces of Kona cotton in Aqua.

After the photo shoot, my “sidekick” Brutus showed his love of the beach!

Brutus at Seaside, Oregon

What could be more fun than seeing a picture of a happy dog? Winning an issue of Quiltmaker’s 100 blocks magazine, volume 10!

In this post, I announced a giveaway for 2 copies of the magazine. I randomly selected winners and have emailed them.

Congratulations to the winners:
dezertsuz and Cathy Melancon

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

A Snack Time Quilt Finish!

Posted on March 31, 2014 by thequiltedcat

Hi everyone!

Last March, I took a class with Julie of Jaybird Quilts. She had finished up her Snack Time pattern, and I was able to purchase a copy of the pattern from the wonderful Quiltmaker booth of goodies outside the classroom area.

I started working on piecing the top sometime last summer and finished it during the fall. Then, other projects popped up, and I never finished the quilting!

This weekend, I finally finished my Snack Time and took some photos of my completed quilt at my sister’s beautiful cabin in the woods!

I used a Bali Pop (2.5″ pre-cut strips) from Hoffman Fabrics in Rum Raisin. I really loved the look of the purples and greens together. For the background, I went with Kona white, which really makes those batiks pop!! The piecing and quilting is with white Aurifil thread.

Here are some pics of the quilt front:

Snack Time at Cabin

Snack Time Close-Up

For the backing, I went with Kona cotton in Lupine with some left-over Snack time blocks, Kona white, and a label.

Snack Time Back

Naturally, this quilt had to be inspected professionally and so Miss Gracie gave us her paw of approval!

Miss Gracie

I still have the original quilt top from that class, Boxed In, to finish. I’ll get it done eventually!

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Toes in the Sand BOM, Blocks 11 and 12

Posted on March 30, 2014 by thequiltedcat

I’ve been participating in the Toes in the Sand BOM by Julie of Jaybird Quilts over the past year, and I’m happy to say that I’ve finished the last 2 sets of blocks! I signed up for this BOM with the Fat Quarter Shop and just loved receiving that package in the mail each month.

The block for month 11 is La Jolla Cove. I love the dark blues in this block!

La Jolla Cove Block

The final block for month 12 is Big Sur. This one has plenty of fun hexagon shapes.

Big Sur Block

Now that I have all the blocks completed, I need to work on the setting triangles and assemble the quilt top.

But first, I really need to finish my Celtic Solstice Mystery top. I’ve signed up to take a class with Bonnie in June so I need to hurry – yikes!

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Toes in the Sand BOM, Month 6

Posted on November 5, 2013 by thequiltedcat

Hi everyone,

I’ve just completed my Toes in the Sand blocks for month 6 in this program! The block is called Santa Cruz and has great movement in the block interior with all these little triangles.

Toes in the Sand, Month 6

Yes, I do have the fabrics ready-to-go for month 7 so I should be caught up with this BOM in the next week or so. I’m participating in this BOM via the Fat Quarter Shop, but you can pick up the pattern, Hex N’ More ruler, and fabrics at your local quilt shop. Or visit the designer, Julie, on her website, Jaybird Quilts.

Happy quilting!
~Jennifer

Toes in the Sand BOM, months 3 and 4

Posted on August 19, 2013 by thequiltedcat

Oh my, I haven’t blogged about the Toes in the Sand BOM since May! I got distracted by the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show and some another must-do quilty projects that popped up in the last few weeks. I did get caught up with months 3 and 4 when, wouldn’t you know it, month 5 arrived in the mail! Hopefully, I’ll get month 5 finished in the next several weeks. Check out my earlier post on this BOM by Jaybird Quilts here.

For month three, we made 2 Venice Beach blocks. This block has quite a bit of movement since each triangle is cut from 4 strips of fabric sewn together. During month four, we made 2 Sonoma Coast blocks. I really like the half hexies combined with the little triangles in this block.

In the photo, the Venice Beach blocks are the top two while the Sonoma Coast blocks are the lower two.

Toes in the Sand, 3 and 4

I have to share these two pictures of my cat quilting helpers. They just can’t resist examining quilt projects when I try to take photos!

Romeo Inspects Toes in the Sand

New BOM – Toes in the Sand!

Posted on April 23, 2013 by thequiltedcat

I had the great pleasure of taking a class from Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts at the Block Party hosted by Quiltmaker here in Portland recently. In the class, one of the ladies mentioned Julie’s new BOM. I was intrigued!

I decided to sign up for this BOM through the Fat Quarter Shop. I think the BOM program is now full, but you can buy the full pattern set and pick up your own fabrics to make this great quilt.

Each month, the participants receive the materials to make 2 blocks. April is the first month so we also received the Toes in the Sand pattern book. This book is well laid out and easy to read so the blocks come together quickly and easily.

This BOM also uses Julie’s Hex N More ruler which is a very versatile tool for creating shapes in all kinds of sizes – hexagons, triangles, half-hexies, and jewels. Really, the possibilities are limitless!

I made my two “Baker Beach” blocks last night in about an hour while the hubs cooked a wonderful dinner. I had the opportunity this afternoon to take a photo in the Oregon sunshine with my dedicated cat helper and one of my official inspectors for all things quilt related.

My Cow cat has decided to rename this quilt — “Cat Toes in the Grass” BOM!

Toes in the Sand BOM – Block One

Hope you enjoy these fun triangle blocks, and I’ll post my progress each month.

Enjoy!
~Jennifer

Boxed In Class at Quiltmaker’s Block Party

Posted on March 28, 2013 by thequiltedcat

In an earlier post, I showed the quilt that I won by finding the lucky golden ticket at Quiltmaker’s Block Party in Portland last weekend. With this post, I want to talk about the class that I took and show a photo of the fabulous goodie bag that all the attendees received.

I signed up for a class with Julie Herman of Jaybird Quilts called Boxed In. You can find this pattern in her book entitled Skip The Borders: Easy Patterns for Modern Quilts. In addition to Boxed In, you’ll find patterns for another 14 quilts so it is a great book to add to your quilt book library.

Julie’s patterns are fresh, fun, and appealing to sew. Boxed In is the perfect pattern to use with one of those pretty jellyrolls that you find in local quilt stores (2.5 inch pre-cut strips rolled together). I went with a bright, spring-like fabric line called Ticklish (Me and My Sister Designs for Moda). In the class, I had enough time to finish about 4 blocks. I need to make another 9 full blocks, 4 partial blocks, and 4 corner blocks. The pattern comes together pretty quickly so I hope to be able to finish my quilt soon!

Here’s a look at my four completed blocks:

Boxed In Blocks

In the class, Julie helped students ‘audition’ fabric choices for the sashing strips. Originally, I was going to use white and purple, but we decided that the black fabric made the Ticklish 2.5-inch squares really pop! I can’t wait to see the finished result.

At the Block Party store, I took the opportunity to purchase Julie’s latest pattern called Snack Time plus her versatile ruler called Hex N More. I highly recommend this ruler because it makes cutting hexagons, triangles, half hexagons, and jewel shapes a snap.

Here’s a pick of some of my purchased goodies:

Hex N More Ruler & Pattern

I really enjoyed experiencing Quiltmaker’s Block Party. I was so surprised to receive a wonderful swag bag stuffed with treasures! The bag itself is a sturdy blue canvas tote with a zipper that will be great for carrying quilting supplies to future events. Inside, I found the following:

15 fat quarters of neutral classics by Kaffe Fasset
A swatch pack of Tokyo fabrics by Red Rooster plus a mini quilt pattern
A charm square pack of Fresco fabric (New July colors) by Robert Kaufman
A fat quarter and retractable ruler by Northcott
A mini square pack of Avalon fabric by Joanna Figueroa for Moda
Misc. fat quarters
Embroidery snips and holder from Handi Quilter
A pin and writing pen from Gammill
200 Blocks book from Quiltmaker Magazine
Misc. patterns, program guide, etc.

Here are the treasures:

Block Party Goodie Bag

Wow – I’ve never received such a nice gift bag at any event before! I really hope that Quiltmaker comes back to Portland next year, and I’ll plan to take a vacation day or two to sign up for more classes!

Enjoy!
~Jennifer