Color Inspiration Thursday {54}

July 16, 2015 kittywilkin 11 Comments

This is the time of year when colors pop up all over our gardens and the surrounding fields. We spend much of our days outside, either swimming at the lake or staying around home, where Finn and I relax in the shade while the big kids play in the kiddie pool and jump through the sprinkler, snuggle chickens, or just explore like curious kids do.

Earlier in the week, when I started thinking about my color inspiration post this week, I decided that I really would love to get some color sans green. Don’t get me wrong–I love green! But sometimes, the gorgeous colors of the flowers beg to be the star without the background sea of green. This thought led to a fun, family-involved activity: color scavenger hunts. So far we’ve completed two color scavenger hunts, where my big kids and I walk around the yard, finding and collecting colors from a specific color family. Then, we head to the shady porch to lay out our finds and arrange them in a fun way.

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Bella Lead, Bella Plum, Bella Berrylicious, Kona Violet, Kona Mulberry, Bella Baby Blue

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
1246 – Grey
2566 – Wisteria
2535 – Magenta
2479 – Med Orchid
4225 – Eggplant
2562 – Lilac

Here’s our fun collection of pink and purple flowers both cultivated and wild found in rural midcoast Maine in July. I’ll be sharing our results from different color scavenger hunts over the next few weeks, with the full palette and then some closer detail shots purely for the fun of seeing the tiny variations in floral anatomy and color.

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Kona Medium Grey, Kona Ash, Bella Peony, Bella Orchid, Bella Berrylicious, Kona Sunny

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
2625 – Arctic Ice
2600 – Dove
2479 – Med Orchid
1103 – Burgundy
2535 – Magenta
2214 – Golden Honey

Such gorgeous details jump out at you when you get really close. The sunny little flower bursts dancing around the center of a zinnia is my favorite part of the flower.

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Kona Pewter, Bella Lead, Bella Plum, Bella Magenta, Bella Petal Pink, Bella Barn Door

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
2606 – Mist
1246 – Grey
2566 – Wisteria
2455 – Med Carmine Red
2562 – Lilac
1103 – Burgundy

If you have young children and are looking for a fun activity to help them explore and notice details in the environment around them, I definitely would recommend going on a color scavenger hunt. Finds don’t need to include only flowers; yesterday at the lake, my daughter found a tiny blue jay feather and some berries from a Blue Bead Lily and the colors matched beautifully. Sadly, I didn’t get a photo, but at least the idea of finding colors in nature stuck with her. If you have older children, they can each conduct their own hunt and displays can get even more intricate–think mandalas and imaginary scenes! I’d love to see what colors you find!

Okay, back outside we go! Enjoy your day and enjoy the color!

All color palettes were created using Play Crafts Palette Builder 2.1 and my photographs.

Life, Quilting

Babies on Quilts and a Big Thank You

July 12, 2015 kittywilkin 16 Comments

I’m thinking I should rename my blog “Babies on Quilts” these days. Babies abound in these parts (seriously, don’t drink the water if you don’t want to join in the new baby snuggles), so many quilts are being created for these new little members of our world. I’ve written about how wonderful it feels to give a quilt to a brand new baby, with wishes that the quilt will accompany the child on his/her grand journey through life. Today I get to write about the immense joy of receiving such a quilt from some dear friends.

I received the sweetest package from my dear quilty friends Stephanie and Michelle (from Late Night Quilter–we are sewing soul sisters half a country apart). They made a gorgeous Delectable Mountain quilt for Finn and included some sweet additions for mommy–a teething necklace and magnetic hexie puff, both in my favorite color!–as well an adorable applique bird onesie for Finn. Finnian loves the quilt already, and clearly the sleepy magic is in it. The first three times I put him on the quilt, he settled right down to sleep!

Finn on his Delectable Mountain quilt — Some big baby laughs before settling down to sleep.

Babies on quilts–I just can’t get enough!

This quilt is the perfect size to take with us everywhere. It fits right in my bag, and will be making memories with us daily, even if that means mostly diaper changes and spit up-filled tummy time in the beginning. Thank you so very much, Stephanie & Michelle. Your love is clearly in this quilt, and it makes me so happy to see it be a part of our daily lives.

This gift is just one example of the wonderful community of quilters of which I’m blessed to be a part. I have been overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of my quilting blogging community, and I not only enjoy conversing with many of you via blog comments and resulting email conversations, but I find myself calling many of you friends. I want to extend a special thanks to Nancy–your care package with such well thought gifts for the entire family is cherished and still appreciate daily in our home. Just yesterday, Maddie made a very special spirograph flower for me to hang on our bedroom door. ❤

Yvonne at Quilting Jetgirl, another dear friend in our blogging community, wrote a wonderful reflective post about community and what it takes to cultivate relationships with people you know purely through blogging. It’s all about authentic connection. I love that her final tip on how to cultivate community is to be you. That’s part of what I love about blogging–I’m free to be me, and share the parts of life and my creative process that inspire me. Amazingly, by doing that, I in turn inspire you, or at least inspire the spark of conversation that begins a relationship. It was just such a spark that began my conversation with Stephanie and Michelle over a year ago, and since then we’ve not only become friends, but we’ve also roomed together at Quilt Con, worked together on many projects, and provided daily support and encouragement to each other from a far.

Thank you, Stephanie and Michelle. Thank you, Nancy. Thank you, Yvonne. And many, many thanks to all of you readers, many of whom I’m now blessed to call friends.

Life, Quilting, Why I Quilt

The Gift of Love {Why I Quilt}

July 10, 2015 kittywilkin 14 Comments

We’ve all heard it many times: it is better to give than to receive. Especially with handmade gifts of love, I fully agree with this sentiment. That doesn’t mean I don’t love to receive handmade gifts–don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love handmade gifts! But seeing someone using and loving and enjoying a quilt that I stitched full of love especially for them, warms my heart and reminds me of yet another reason I quilt. Quilting allows me to give the gift of love in a warm snuggly form that can literally wrap around the recipient, and that will hopefully last a lifetime.

reagan on her hazel hedgehog quilt — I realized recently that I had yet to share photos of baby Reagan on her Pinkalicious Hazel Hedgehog quilt and thought it was high time I rectified that!

Take, for instance, a baby quilt. I know a few grown adults who still have–or even sleep with–a handmade blanket or quilt that was given to them at birth. There’s just something about a baby blanket that is especially comforting.

Quilts are also infinitely useful to babies and their doting, toting mamas. Babies spend a lot of time on the floor (quilt!), need diaper changes (quilt!), need to stay warm (quilt!), need tummy time (quilt!),… the list of uses goes on and on, and evolves as the child grows (think superhero capes, club forts, and picnics galore).

I absolutely love seeing babies on the quilts I’ve made for them. It reaffirms all of the time, effort, money, and LOVE that I’ve put into the creation of the quilt and inspires me to create even more. I’m looking forward to seeing Reagan grow with her quilt, and her cousin Finn is sure to join her on it whenever the opportunity arises!

cousins on hazel hedgehog quilt — Cousins Reagan and Finn, born one day apart (Reagan is older!), sharing some time on Reagan’s Pinkalicious Hazel Hedgehog quilt at less than a week old.

Life, Quilting

More Baby Quilt Beginnings and a New Goal

July 8, 2015 kittywilkin 22 Comments

It all started as a joke. Sitting around the breakfast table on the morning of Finn’s one month “birthday”, I jokingly said to my husband, “So what stuffed animal should we use in Finn’s one month photo shoot? What outfit should he wear?” I know that it’s all the rage to buy those monthly milestone stickers and find a cute stuffie and a big chair in which to take photos of your baby each month, but Finn is the third child. I didn’t make it past 4 months with Max, my second, and didn’t even plan to attempt this time around. We take lots of pictures day to day, so the memories will be made.

My husband, joking right back, said, “Didn’t you whip up a quilt block for his one month photos?” But instead of laughing and enjoying a mutual “poor third child” joke, I gaped. What a great idea! Now this idea of a quilt block per month was stuck in my head. How long could it really take to sew up a quick simple block? There was no turning back.

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about the importance of making time to sew, and how a simple 20 minutes per day can add up to progress. I decided to put this to the test, set a timer for 20 minutes, and use whatever block resulted from my timer sewing endeavor. I opted for a simple log cabin block, inspired by the recent log cabin blocks made by Kim at My Go-Go Life and the epic log cabin quilts made by Luke Haynes. It was also the perfect choice since I could use scraps and just sew whatever strips fit without too much thought.

Ta da! The project was a slam dunk (get it? Finn is slam dunking… kind of?). I had to pause the 20 minute timer once for a baby nursing break, and I ultimately decided to hit snooze and sew for 30 minutes, since I had the opportunity, but it worked! Making the goal to sit down and sew for 20 minutes got me at my machine and resulted in a 12+” block.

My friends Stephanie at Late Night Quilter and Mandy at Mandalei Quilts and I are going to try out a goal of sewing (or making other sewing-related progress) at least 20 minutes each day. We are all busy moms with full plates, but setting a small, attainable goal will help us make sewing progress, too, without stress. We will be sure to post about our experiences on our blogs as well as on Instagram using hashtag #sewtake20. My first #sewtake20 trial run was a success and resulted in a great start to a new project, documenting how a quilt can grow along with my baby with only 20 minutes per month.

They are both getting soooo big!

I’m linking up with Freshly Pieced’s Work in Progress Wednesday, and will be posting more about my #sewtake20 progress on Instagram. If you feel like you need a little boost to get sewing daily, feel free to set a timer for yourself. Tag #sewtake20 so that Stephanie, Mandy, and I can see your progress and cheer you on!

Quilting

July Goal {ALYoF}

July 7, 2015 kittywilkin 8 Comments

July came in with a literal bang, and here we are already a week into it! I’m squeaking by with my July goal setting post for A Lovely Year of Finishes (ALYoF) just in the nick of time. This month I have a super fun but secret project to finish. I have a pattern coming out in the September issue of Make Modern eMagazine, and my goal for July is to finish it all up! I need to trim, bind, and photograph the quilt, and need to finish proofreading the pattern write up.

I can only show you tiny peeks until the issue comes out, but you can count on a full reveal come September.

alison glass ex libris — I plan to bind the quilt with this Alison Glass Geometry print from her Ex Libris line. The fabric designer aficionados among you probably noticed that the quilt includes the 2015 Sun Prints by Alison Glass… surprised? 🙂

I’m confident that I’ll meet this goal, since, well, I have to! The deadline is a week away. For this reason, I considered choosing a different project as my July goal, but ultimately opted not to. ALYoF emphasizes the selection of ONE goal per month, which really helps me prioritize my project progress. Finishing this quilt submission is my biggest goal, so it is a perfect choice for ALYoF.

As a mom of a newborn, and newly a mom of three, my progress is made in very small bits. I have learned that if I set lofty, time consuming goals, I set myself up for failure or at the very least, a stressful anxious push to complete the goals in time. On the other hand, when I set small, attainable goals, I’m motivated to complete them without stress, and then feel good that I’ve actually accomplished something, which then motivates me to create more. Just because I complete my ALYoF goal before the end of the month doesn’t mean I can’t then work on other projects. It’s a win-win of positive, fun quilty progress without stress.

I’m linking up to A Lovely Year of Finishes July Goal Setting party with Fiber of All Sorts and Sew BitterSweet Designs. When I complete this month’s goal, you’ll get another sneak peek or two to hold you over until September!

Business

Sponsor Introduction: Pile O’ Fabric

July 6, 2015 kittywilkin 3 Comments

I’m excited to introduce you to a new sponsor: Pile O’ Fabric. Many of you may be familiar with Pile O’ Fabric, an independently run modern sewing shop and blog by Alyssa Lichner. It is rare for me to find a shop in which I love ALL of the stocked fabric, but Pile O’ Fabric just may be such a shop.

Here are just a few of the great shop features that keep me coming back:

Curated bundles complete with both prints and solids.

Pile o fabric Life of a Botanist fabric bundle — Life of the Botanist bundle at Pile O’ Fabric.

You know me and color. I play with color palettes every week, so when I visit Pile O’ Fabric and see that the curated bundles include not only coordinating color palettes with matching solids, but ALSO a bundle of said coordinating solids, I swoon.

Easy fabric search-ability based on different characteristics like color family, scale, and material in addition to manufacturer, designer and collection. For example, you can search for all fabrics in a specific color family, including fun unique colors like pickle and persimmon, or you can browse only fabrics with large scale prints. This definitely makes it easier to find the perfect fabric for your project.

A great selection of kits.

Not only does Alyssa carry kits for her Skill Builder Block of the Month quilts–have you SEEN the Technicolor Galaxy Quilt for 2015!?–but she also has kits to help get you started with a new craft, such as an English Paper Piecing Starter Kit, or make one of your favorite patterns, such as a Sew Together Bag.

The Pile O’ Fabric blog also provides a great resource full of tutorials, patterns and inspiration. I’m thrilled to be partnering with Alyssa and Pile O’ Fabric, and definitely recommend checking out all her shop has to offer.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a “sponsored post.” The company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift, or something else of value to write it. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be helpful or enjoyable for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Hand Stitching

Dropcloth Color Wheel Embroidery Finish… but only the Beginning!

July 3, 2015 kittywilkin 22 Comments

I’ve officially completed my first ever embroidery sampler, and I must say I’m hooked! It has been the perfect project to just pick up here and there while snuggling a sleeping baby and playing with two big kids.

I stitched this Color Wheel sampler by Rebecca Ringquist of Dropcloth using Aurifil 12wt cotton in the following colors (for when you want to get your own sampler to embroider, since I’ve had a few people ask about details!):

2884 Green Yellow
1147 Light Leaf Green

1148 Light Jade

4140 Wedgewood

2525 Dusty Blue Violet
2784 Dark Navy
2515 Light Orchid

2540 Medium Lavender

5002 Medium Red

1154 Orange
2145 Yellow Orange
2120 Canary

I love the shine of the stitches created by the Aurifil 12wt, and I’ve already mentioned how nice it was to work with a thread that wasn’t strandy or prone to unravel.

Initially I thought I might finish the sampler in a hoop and hang it in my craft loft as is, but the colors are just so gorgeous that I feel a strong need to draw them out into an even larger creation. I scanned the sampler and played with it in Inkscape a bit to determine a course of action, and I think I’m going to aim to make a larger color wheel using coordinating fabric–mostly Alison Glass Sun Prints, although I’m sure none of you are surprised at that!

Once I visited my fabric stash and did a trial fabric pull, I was completely convinced that a larger quilted color wheel is the way to go.

Really, can you blame me for wanting to use these fabrics in every.single.project!?

I will most likely include my favorite neutral, Robert Kaufman Essex yarn dyed linen in charcoal as the background, although I’m liking the bright colors’ contrast on a lighter background, too.

So, once again, I’ve finished a project only to turn it into a larger, more complex project. But as usual, I am very excited about this project extension! I will be trying my first inset circle as well as practicing curved sewing, in which I have only dabbled early in my quilting foray. I’m also I’m eager to hand quilt the next phase of the project with the Aurifil 12wt to help tie the entire color wheel together.

I’m linking up my Dropcloth Color Wheel Embroidery Sampler finish with Crazy Mom Quilts Finish it Up Friday & TGIFF, even though it’s only the beginning of the next phase of the project. Let the rainbow wheel stitching begin!

Color Inspiration

Color Inspiration Thursday {53}

July 2, 2015 kittywilkin 4 Comments

July! With the 4th of July holiday upon us, I thought I’d try my hand at some patriotic color palettes. While the poppy reads a bit more orange than red, the combination of poppies with blueberries in a pristine white dish evoke a backyard patriotism. Since we plan to celebrate the holiday with a backyard barbecue, it seems fitting. Admittedly, blueberries are not yet ripe, so the blueberry photo is a repost from last August. It’s a tried and true blue–enjoy!

Color palettes are created using Play Crafts’ Palette Builder 2.1 and my photographs. Matching Kona cotton solids, Moda Bella solids and Aurifil thread is a perk provided by the Palette Builder.

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Kona Gold, Kona Cedar, Kona Mocha, Kona Coal, Bella Soft Finish Black, Bella Kansas Red

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
2155 – Cinnamon
2390 – Cinnamon Toast
2468 – Dk Wine
1246 – Grey
4241 – V Dk Grey
2385 – Terracotta

Corresponding solids from left to right:
Bella Stone, Bella Etchings Slate, Kona Dusty Blue, Bella Glacier, Kona Regal, Bella Sapphire

Corresponding Aurifil thread from left to right:
5011 – Rope Beige
2625 – Arctic Ice
2612 – Arctic Sky
5008 – Sugar Paper
2745 – Midnight
1248 – Grey Blue

May you have a happy and safe 4th of July if you’re in the US, and a lovely weekend to all!

english paper piecing, Hand Stitching, Tutorials

Hand Stitching Preparedness {Tip}

June 30, 2015 kittywilkin 10 Comments

Recently I’ve been doing a lot of hand stitching, between finishing the piecing of my English Paper Pieced table runner, and stitching the pieced Lucy Boston blocks down to the border fabric to complete my table runner quilt top. During the past weeks, I learned two tricks that have helped streamline the process, and I’d like to share them with you today. I’ll call it “hand stitching preparedness” since it seems pretty logical, even if both tips were revelations to me.

The first tip came in the form of an Instagram post by Carole Lyles Shaw (@carole_lylesshaw), a simple photo of a few pre-threaded and knotted needles stuck into the arm of the couch to help streamline her binding while watching a game on TV. I saw this and a lightbulb went off in my brain: duh!!

Before sitting down with your hand stitching, whether it be EPP, hand applique, or quilt binding, pre-thread and knot a few needles and have them ready and waiting within reach.

You can keep them in a pincushion nearby (photo above)…

pre threaded and knotted needles on a needle minder — The adorable needle minder was made by @whatthebobbin on Instagram.

or you can keep them on a needle minder on your actual work…

or you can just stick them into the arm of the couch right next to you.

This tip came in particularly handy since I was doing my hand stitching with my sleeping baby in my lap and my scissors, thread, and other sewing tools way up high on top of the bookcase, out of reach of my curious and busy 3 year old. Talk about a game changer! I was able to finish stitching down the blocks without waking my babe or having to juggle a sleeping baby, scissors, and sewing needles to cut new threads as I progressed.

cutting threads in advance — Stunning needlebook made by @mara_makes… isn’t that thread holder awesome!?

One additional bit of advice I’ll add to this tip is to lay your threads out neatly and separately when cutting them to pre-thread your needles. If you cut them and lay them on top of each other, they *may* make a tangled mess before you can thread the needles successfully.

Ask me how I know this 😉

And finally, learning how to tie a quilter’s knot has saved me a lot of time with my recent hand stitching. That’s one of the downfalls of being a primarily self-taught sewist: you miss the simple basic tricks that well versed quilters take for granted. My friend Stephanie at Late Night Quilter posted this video tutorial a couple weeks ago, and I’ve made dozens of quilter’s knots since.

Happy stitching!

I’m linking up with Tips & Tutorials Tuesday over at Late Night Quilter.

Hand Stitching, Life

June Finish {ALYoF}: Baby! & EPP Table Runner Flimsy

June 29, 2015 kittywilkin 22 Comments

It’s hard to believe that less than a month ago, I was still pregnant. Yet in early June when I was setting my goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes (ALYoF), my goal was to have a baby!! I also added in a little hand stitching goal of completing my Summer English Paper Pieced (EPP) table runner top. I’m happy to report that I accomplished both of those goals!

Many of you have been appropriately introduced to baby Finn, who made his appearance 5 days into the month. Earlier today, I completed the final stitches attaching the EPP pieces to a solid border, finishing the table runner quilt top just in time.

blind ish stitch Lucy Boston applique — I used blind-ish stitch to sew the Lucy Boston blocks to a solid border fabric.

I used Aurifil 1320 – Medium Teal and a blind-ish stitch, which I hear is a highly favored stitch, to attach the EPP Lucy Boston blocks to a solid border fabric, Moda Bella solid in Coastal. I have not yet cut away the fabric behind the blocks, but I most likely will do so before layering, basting, and hand quilting the table runner.

Now that I’ve grown my Aurifil 12wt thread stash, I’m excited to hand quilt this table runner. I have not yet decided on a quilting pattern, but I probably will go with a simple echo-border pattern. Finn doesn’t seem too interested in the stitching, but that’s ok!

I’m linking up with A Lovely Year of Finishes June Finish Party, and already contemplating my goal for July. I’m really enjoying being a part of ALYoF, since it is a little added incentive to focus on one project and actually make visible progress. This is my fourth successful monthly finish, since I missed the goal setting deadline for January and completely missed May. Not too bad!