I ♥ a Sew In!

I do so love a Sew In! Our lovely little guild, Maritime Modern Quilt Guild, holds them monthly. ☺ It always seems like such a long time between the November and January Sew Ins! Last night, I spent some quality time in the studio packing my bags. It makes it so much easier to get out the door in the morning!

We've got a lot of new members on the roster for 2017 and quite a few came to their first Sew In today. It was great to see so many new faces. I arrived with no less than 6 projects in mind. One doesn't want to run out when they have 7 hours of uninterrupted sewing on the schedule! First up was my mini for the MQG Mini Quilt Swap. My partner likes rainbow... I hope she likes this interpretation!

 

When I arrived, it was layered and ready to quilt. By lunch time, I had it quilted, bound, and ready to hand stitch!

Next up, turning this pile of scraps into a mini mini quilt for a special young lady having a rough go. Way back when, she used to draw little giraffes on the bottom of the quizzes she wrote in my class. When I found this little scrap in the bins, I knew I could make a little something for her.

 

When one mixes in a little Kona, Carolyn Friedlander Crosshatch and Lizzie House Mini Pearl Bracelets, it just has to work! Another project ready for hand stitching the binding by day's end!

We took a little break mid-afternoon for a round of LCR with fat quarters as the prizes. For the first time ever, I walked away with the kitty. There are definitely some treasures in there!

Then on to a little project I've taken on for 2017... The Garden Snail-Along. It's an Instagram thing (yes, I've succumbed). Just one wee little snail a week. But I decided to work ahead a little so I wouldn't be up against a deadline in the coming weeks! If you're interested, the pattern is available on Craftsy from Pen and Paper Patterns. Here are the deets on the Snail Along over at Gnome Angel!

I couldn't possibly have this many uninterrupted sewing hours and not make a little something for DT. They got a fun play kitchen for Christmas (more on that in another post) and have been obsessed with making eggs in their wee frying pan.

GT had the pleasure of sharing in her grandmother's birthday dinner of lobsters a few weeks ago. She's now very interested in "lobbers." So much so that she's asked for them for supper a number of nights. I spent the last hour of Sew In working away on this wee critter. I bought the pattern this week from Gulf Coast Cottage on Etsy. Honestly, given enough time and patience, I would consider making every pattern they have. So stinkin' cute!

I'm linking up today with a new to me link-up, Show Off Saturday! Pop on over and see what others are making this week-end!

J


P.S Please excuse the slightly blurry pics. Even though I packed the night before, I managed to pack my camera with without an SD card! Duh!

Mal aux cheveux...

Not an expression you're familiar with? It's Acadian for hung over... meaning literally that you're in such a bad way that your hair aches! I am most definitely hungover, but not in the way you might imagine. I'm recovering from a quilting bender in the form of our first ever Maritime Modern Quilt Guild Retreat. Two days, two nights... so much quilting!
Yup... an entire conference room filled with quilters! So much talent in one place.
And the swag! I pitched (and many of the other retreaters went for) the idea of a swag bag exchange. Everyone who opted in made/bought a little something for everyone else in the exchange.

The result? A goodie bag stuffed with fun! And a few of our retreat sponsors sent enough treats for the entire class. Thanks, Canadian National Fabric, Dinkydoo Modern Fabrics, and Fabric Spark!

Digging into that bag was like opening one's stocking on Christmas morning.I will freely admit that many of the edibles are missing from this pic. No need to dwell on it. The rest are stuffed in that lovely purple zipper pouch!

On Saturday, we had a power hour of sewing for our charity program. Prizes were awarded most sewn in an hour. Anja @ Anja Quilts managed 37! I did 22 in 45 minutes and promptly ran out of pre-cut pieces. Dang!

We also had a number of mystery projects... not so mysterious to me as I chose them! One was this pincushion that attaches to your machine. It's from a tutorial from I Can Find the Time. I modified it a bit and used elastic instead of a ribbon tie.

Another of our mystery projects was the Goody Goody Binding Kit from a tutorial by Lella Boutique.  I used some of precious Lizzy House Natural History. I love those butterflies!

I might have gone a little overboard quilting the exterior! And Lynn @ Buttons Quilts, do you recognize that pocket fabric?

I opted not to include the strawberry scissor pocket from the original and the inside looked a little... meh. Add an appliquéd butterfly. Much better!

Q-Squared was fully present this week-end. Dena @ No Frickin' Blog Yet was sewing away on these lovely black and white and red all over blocks.

And Anja @ Anja Quilts was using some of those charm squares I gave her in the Do Bees Christmas Gift Exchange!

Somehow Q-B @ had left when I snapped the above pics. But she was très productive as well!

Here are a few random pics from my table over the course of the week-end... sometimes it's the little things that I just need to capture.

  I finished my iPhone case just in time to show it off at retreat!

  I'd been craving these all week. Good food choices? Not so much this week-end.

My plastic tote of notions. I know there are fancier, more organized ways to cart one's stuff, but this works for me.

Peppermint tea, many rolls of tape (you just don't know what you're going to need), and my pop up name tag. And Miss Amanda's entire stash under her table!

Miss Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails made me smile with her swag buttons. Can you guess which one is one of a kind and just for me!

I will have more to share in the days to come... some MAJOR progress was made on some big projects this week-end! Stay tuned. While you're waiting with bated breath, please pop on over to our guild's blog to see a big 'ole list of our retreat sponsors. There are some fabulous Canadian shops on that list. More great places to spend your fabric budget!

Today I'm missing my quilty pals and all our shenanigans. Not to even mention those endless hours at the machine. Maybe I just need a little hair of the dog... ☺

J

P.S. If you'd like to read some other perspectives on our retreat, head over to Chezzetcook Modern Quilts, Anja Quilts, Candy Coated Quilts, Scrapmaster, or The Cuddle Quilter. I'll add more blog links as my other retreat pals get their posts up!

The penultimate...

Our Meet Maritime Modern Blog Hop is drawing to a close... today's stop (the next to last) is over at The Running Thimble with the super busy, Dominique. We first met as members of Mariners Quilt Guild. I'm so happy she's made the jump to Martime Modern. She's got a great way of combining modern and traditional style!

It's not too late to catch up on your reading and enter a giveaway or two!

Tuesday, May 5 - Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge(Hey, that's me... and there's a giveaway!)
Wednesday, May 6 - Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts  (... and there's a giveaway!)
Thursday, May 7 - Tracy @ Quilting on the Dark Side (... and there's a giveaway. I see a theme!)
Friday, May 8 - Anja @ Anja Quilts  (Whee... another giveaway!)
Saturday, May 9 - Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails (Guess what? There's a giveaway!)
Sunday, May 10 -  Linda @ Scrapmaster (And another fabulous giveaway!)
Monday, May 11 - Jeanette @ Stamp Stitch Create  (Yup.. you guessed it. A giveaway!)
Tuesday, May 12 - Dominique @ The Running Thimble (Oooh... a giveaway!) 
Wednesday, May 13 - Aimee @ Candy Coated Quilts

J

Next stop....

It's a new week and the MMQG is still hoppin' along! Today's stop is over at Stamp Stitch Create with our Guild Secretary, Jeannette. You'll love having a look at her swanky sewing space. And of course, the quilts. If I had a million dollars, I would hire Jeannette as my personal fabric shopper. Boy, can she choose great colour palettes!

Tuesday, May 5 - Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge(Hey, that's me... and there's a giveaway!)
Wednesday, May 6 - Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts  (... and there's a giveaway!)
Thursday, May 7 - Tracy @ Quilting on the Dark Side (... and there's a giveaway. I see a theme!)
Friday, May 8 - Anja @ Anja Quilts  (Whee... another giveaway!)
Saturday, May 9 - Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails (Guess what? There's a giveaway!)
Sunday, May 10 -  Linda @ Scrapmaster (And another fabulous giveaway!)
Monday, May 11 - Jeanette @ Stamp Stitch Create  (Yup.. you guessed it. A giveaway!)
Tuesday, May 12 - Dominique @ The Running Thimble
Wednesday, May 13 - Aimee @ Candy Coated Quilts

J

Chocolate is a vegetable.

Today's stop on the Meet Maritime Modern Blog Hop is over at Purple Boots & Pigtails with cussin' & quiltin' Val.

One of our first MMQG swaps... wicked pincushion by Val!

Between whisky drinking and free piecing, this woman is a marvel. She also coined the term "Kona Nerd" to describe certain members of our guild. For the record, I prefer "Kona Badass". And I'm fairly certain she shares the opinion expressed in the title of this post. Heck, it comes from a bean, right? You can put it in salad if you want to...

Tuesday, May 5 - Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge (Hey, that's me... and there's a giveaway!)
Wednesday, May 6 - Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts  (... and there's a giveaway!)
Thursday, May 7 - Tracy @ Quilting on the Dark Side (... and there's a giveaway!)
Friday, May 8 - Anja @ Anja Quilts (... and there's a giveaway. I see a theme!)
Saturday, May 9 - Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails (What! Another giveaway?!)
Sunday, May 10 -  Linda @ Scrapmaster
Monday, May 11 - Jeanette @ Stamp Stitch Create
Tuesday, May 12 - Dominique @ The Running Thimble
Wednesday, May 13 - Aimee @ Candy Coated Quilts

And now I'm going to get the heck away from the computer and actually sew something! You know, so I have something to blog about later. #quiltbloggerproblems

J

No Finish Friday!

Alas, this week has been a gong show for daytime naps, so I have no finish to share with you. I'm happy to say that I managed some time for a few starpoints on Technicolor Galaxy and a trip to the post office to mail some Polaroid blocks. And got out for a couple walks in the megastroller with DT as part of the 30x30 Challenge!

The Meet Maritime Modern Blog Hop continues today over at Anja Quilts! Pop on over to my double bee-mate, Girl Guide pal, and all-round super loyal friend, Anja AKA Q-A.

 

Here's the rest of the gang... in case you need to plan ahead or catch up on your blog reading!

Tuesday, May 5 - Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge(Hey, that's me... and there's a giveaway!)
Wednesday, May 6 - Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts  (... and there's a giveaway!)
Thursday, May 7 - Tracy @ Quilting on the Dark Side (... and there's a giveaway!)
Friday, May 8 - Anja @ Anja Quilts (... and there's a giveaway. I see a theme!)
Saturday, May 9 - Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails
Sunday, May 10 -  Linda @ Scrapmaster
Monday, May 11 - Jeanette @ Stamp Stitch Create
Tuesday, May 12 - Dominique @ The Running Thimble
Wednesday, May 13 - Aimee @ Candy Coated Quilts

J

Thankful Thursday!

My bloggy pal, Yvonne @ Quilting JetGirl has started a lovely little Thursday link-up all about gratitude. I don't often contribute, but each week when I read her post, I get to thinking about the things I am thankful for. Not a bad way to spend some time! But this week, I'm going a little further.

I am so thankful for my Maritime Modern Quilt Guild.

We're new and smallish, but neither of those things holds us back from having lots of fun! As someone who doesn't get out of the house as much as she used to (hmmmm... I wonder why), our Sew Ins and meetings are often high points in my month. I've already written a love letter or two about it, but it's worth saying again. Being with a group of creative, like-minded individuals makes my day!

And we just happen to be a few days into our first ever Meet Maritime Modern Blog Hop.

 

Tuesday, May 5 - Jenn @ A Quarter Inch from the Edge(Hey, that's me... and there's a giveaway!)
Wednesday, May 6 - Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts  (... and there's a giveaway!)
Thursday, May 7 - Tracy @ Quilting on the Dark Side (... and there's a giveaway. I see a theme!)
Friday, May 8 - Anja @ Anja Quilts
Saturday, May 9 - Val @ Purple Boots and Pigtails
Sunday, May 10 -  Linda @ Scrapmaster
Monday, May 11 - Jeanette @ Stamp Stitch Create
Tuesday, May 12 - Dominique @ The Running Thimble
Wednesday, May 13 - Aimee @ Candy Coated Quilts

I hope you'll take some time to meet (at least on the interwebs) these talented quilter-bloggers. I know I'm enjoying getting to know them!

J

P.S. And I'm linking up with Quilty Thankful Thursday @ Quliting JetGirl!

Banner Blocks!

Woo hoo! My banner blocks are done on time! Each member was offered the opportunity to make a block to border the an amazing center section featuring our name and logo (check my sidebar for a pic of the logo).

And we even got the fabric - Konas donated by Robert Kaufman (White, Pacific, Prussian, Aqua, Oasis, and Breakers). 
I decided that since I was only making a couple blocks, I wanted to do something complicated. Why do I do this to myself? I had to take this apart more times than I'd like to admit... and there's still a spot that's a little haywire. But if you squint it looks good!

I was lucky enough to get to make two! For my next trick, I chose something that wasn't as likely to make me swear and reach for the seam ripper. It's sort of a Chinese Coins improv-y dealio. It's a little washed out in this pic... très sunny!

In addition to the border blocks, we were also asked to make a signature block for the black of the banner. Here's mine...

I used this tutorial to make it. Not too fancy, but it is for the back after all! And yes, I plan to sign it before handing it in! ☺ Can't wait to see what the banner looks like after Linda from Scrapmaster gets her free-motioning little paws on it. It's going to look wicked good!

Tonight I'm off to our August meeting. I love that our little guild meets 12 months of the year! To make it even better, we're meeting at that new fabric shop I told you about last week. And we'll find out who won our guild's Michael Miller Challenge. I'm pretty sure it wasn't me! ☺

J