Winner Winner Chicken Dinner . . .

Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving comments for the Traditional Fat Quarter Quilt Book Tour! I had fun reading all the comments you left. By the way, most of you need to give yourself permission to enjoy every minute you're on your computers doing quilty things. Just think of all the time you save by learning new and faster techniques, the money you save by looking for the best deals on fabric, and most importantly, the friends you make, it's our version of a quilting bee! Time well spent all around.

Here are the book winners:

Monday: Kim from Kim's Kreations

Tuesday: Judy - Shade Tree Quilting

Wednesday: Michele G

Friday: Vicki T

I know, I didn't say Friday was a giveaway day but it was, a secret giveaway day!

All the winners have been contacted by email.

So here's my latest quilt that I made using Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille.

And here's my other quilt, Lifetime Quilt Number 60, that I made using Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille.

Both lovely, and all the quilts I need made out of Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille.

Here's what I have left over, some yardage, some pieces from a layer cake, some pieces from a charm pack and some scraps. Would you like to have a quilt or two made from Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille?

 - Contest Now Closed - 

I'm passing this fabric along to anyone who's interested. Just leave a comment on this post telling us what's your favorite food! Mine is pie, pizza pie, chicken pot pie, apple pie, coconut cream pie, you name it, if it has a crust I love it! (except that nasty rhubarb, who thought that was a good idea, to make a pie out of that!)

The box is packed and just needs an address to find its way to your house.

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Book Tour - Final Day

I can't believe it's over, hasn't this week flown by! I hope you've enjoyed the book tour and were able to stop by all the blogs and see all the blocks, projects and quilts that were made using the patterns in Monique's book.

So here's the Pyramid project in the book.

This quilt, which is a very generous lap size quilt, finishes at 61" x 72". All you need to make the center portion of the quilt is 4 brown fat quarters, 4 red fat quarters, and 4 blue fat quarters plus 2 yards of background fabric. Who doesn't have 16 fat quarters and 2 yards of background fabric laying around their sewing room. Add 1 1/2 yards for the outer border and 1/2 yard for the inner border and you have a lap size quilt.

So here are my blocks, (I added one more column than the pattern)

all pieced and ready for some borders. I think they look pretty good just like this.

And here it is all done! I could not be more pleased with that outer border. It does its job perfectly, to finish the quilt without over powering the center blocks.

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 81.

It finished at 72" x 72" and has approximately 1,157 pieces.

The pattern is Pyramid by Monique Dillard

The fabric is Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille

- Contest Now Closed - 

You have until the end of day Saturday, March 30th, to leave a comment on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday's posts to be included in the drawing for the books.

Nicole at Sister's Choice Quilts and Carrie at La Vie en Rosie are blogging about their projects today, be sure to stop by to see their creations and for more opportunities to win.

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Book Tour - Day Three

So it's day three of the book tour, where I'm blogging about Monique Dillard's newest book, "Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts" Just in case this is your first visit, I chose to make Pyramid and am using Simple Abundance by Bonnie and Camille for Moda.

I decided to go with 5 blocks across by 5 blocks down. I'm going through a square quilt phase.

And here's all the blocks connected.

Tomorrow I'll share the final picture where the border has been added. It makes a huge difference and really brings the whole quilt to life.

I've enjoyed reading all the comments you've been leaving. I am so inspired by the quilters with jobs, kids, classes, other hobbies, and all manner of distractions who still manage to find time to sew. Although the time and situations differ for each quilter, we're all the same in one regard, we try to squeeze in the most sewing with whatever time we do get. Oh and for you folks who can't wait to retire so you can sew 40 hours a week, I thought the same thing, you'll be so surprised how fast your day flies by, and not in front of your machine.

Since this seems to be such a popular book I'm happy to be able to give another book away for today's post. To be eligible to win another chance at another book just let me know how much time you spend on your computer each week for quilting. Time spent reading blogs, checking out Pinterest, updating your own blog, shopping, and checking and responding to email.

I try to limit myself to around 10 hours a week, but every now and then I sit down for hours at a stretch just to get caught up. I am easily able to keep up with reading my comments that are routed to my phone. It's nice to have conversations with quilters all day long. I think my time on the computer is time well spent, my confidence, creativity, and enjoyment for quilting have immeasurably increased since I started blogging.

- Contest now closed - 

If you not done so, you can also still leave a comment on Day One and Day Two posts for other chances to win.

Two other folks are participating in the book tour today,

Monique - at Open Gate Quilts

and

Denise from Quilters Window.

Monique has a tutorial and is giving away a book and some rulers, I'm sure Denise has something great going on too, don't miss out!

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Book Tour - Day Two

Welcome to day two of my book tour for Monique Dillard's latest book, "Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts".

Of the eleven projects in the book, I picked Pyramid for my project. Monique named all the projects in the book after solitaire card games. Growing up, we weren't really a card playing family, Yahtzee yes, cards, maybe some Crazy Eights but that was about it. While I was working on Pyramid the quilt I got to thinking about Pyramid the card game and looked it up. It's fun!

It's a fairly simple game, goes fast, and I win more than I don't. I found the rules at Wickepedia, click here if you're in the mood for a little Pyramid solitaire!

So here's a nice close-up view of Monique's blocks for her Pyramid.

She chose 4 different blue fabrics, 4 different brown fabrics, and 4 different red fabrics for her blocks. I changed mine up a little.

I went with one green, one brown and one red fabric for the outer pieces of the block but went scrappy for the center block.

Here's what my block looks like!

The response to yesterday's book tour post was wonderful, thanks so much for stopping by and talking about your vacation, or lack of vacation, plans. Talking about vacation reminded me of the time I asked a co-worker if they had a nice vacation after he'd been out of the office for a week, he said, "we left town with the kids, there's nothing about that that's a vacation"! Some of you are in the same boat. Deb shared that not only is she gong to Ireland, she's attending a quilt show there! That's pretty much my definition of a perfect vacation. Several folks are looking forward to vacations with family. I take a vacation every year with just my daughter, we've yet to pick a place or a date but I'm counting the days!

- Contest now closed - 

Yesterday's response was so good I decided to give another book away for today. So if you've not done so, leave a comment on yesterday's blog for an entry for one book and leave a comment today for a chance to win the another book.

For today's comment I would love to know how much time you get to spend on quilting, what's your weekly average? I don't spend much time in my sewing room on the weekends, my daily goal is two hours, and I get that most days, some days more, so I would say I get to spend 15 hours a week working on a project. I'm retired so my days are pretty much mine to do as I please. Some weeks I get in more time if my husband is traveling and Cooper cooperates. So what's your number?

Today, Lisa/Stashmaster is blogging about her project, Spider, and also giving away a book, be sure to stop by!

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Book Tour . . . .

Greetings and welcome to the book tour of "Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts" another wonderful fat quarter book by Monique Dillard.

This book was published by C & T Publishing and is available now. If your local quilt shop doesn't carry it you can order it here.

I was so happy that Monique asked me to participate in another blog tour for her latest book. I wasn't sure I would ever hear from Monique again after last year's tour.

Just in case you've forgotten, last year I made Crazy Eights from the book "Fat Quarter Winners", which I named Monique's Quilt. It's Lifetime Quilt Number 69 if you want to take a peek. I absolutely love it. But I didn't make it exactly like the pattern in the book, instead of going scrappy I used one background fabric plus I added a pieced border. It was my first book tour and I didn't know, until a few folks "kindly" pointed it out, that agreeing to do a book tour, then changing up the pattern of one of quilts in the book tour was rude! (who knew!!) But luckily Monique was great about me making changes to her pattern and thinks all her patterns are just a starting point for whatever we want to make. (whew, what a relief!)

Monique runs a pretty easygoing book tour, pick any project you want, using any fabric you want, blog about it any way you want and give away a book. Who wouldn't sign on for that!

The book has directions for 11 different patterns, and each pattern provides the fabric and block requirements for multiple size options. Each pattern is named after a solitaire game.

All the patterns appealed to me but this one, Pyramid, was my most favorite by far. It was probably the red nine patches that initially caught my eye, (shocking I know!) but I also liked the looks of the main block, a block I had not made before. I don't think any of the quilts I've made in the past look anything like Pyramid, a change is always good, right? So I'll be blogging about Pyramid this week.

One thing that I like about books over single patterns is all the color. I love the great big colored pictures of the finished quilts, piecing directions made easier with vibrant color illustrations, plus this book provides a nice closeup shot of the finished quilt so you can study the blocks and the quilting. It's eye candy for sure.

Another thing that appealed to me about Pyramid was the fabric, Park Avenue by Three Sisters for Moda. I recognized it since that is the family of fabric I used for Eventide, which is currently on my guest room bed. For some reason it just made the quilt seem familiar, seeing it in a fabric that I like. But I'll be using a different family of fabric. Having just hung A-Mazing Abundance (Lifetime Quilt Number 60) in the living room, I was reminded that I still have more of that wonderful Simple Abundance fabric by Bonnie and Camille for Moda. So that's what I'm going to use. I think it will be fun to see how different, or not, this quilt will look using the same fabric for a different pattern.

As part of the book tour I'll be giving away one "Traditional Fat Quarter Quilts" book. To be eligible, leave a comment on each post where I blog about Pyramid this week. If you leave a comment each day, you will be entered multiple times.


 - Contest now Closed - 

I always like to learn a little something about the quilters who stop by my blog when folks are leaving comments for a giveaway, so how about for today, let me know if you're planning on taking a vacation this year, and if so, where are you going! If I don't do some serious planning soon, I won't be going anywhere!

Several other bloggers will be participating in the blog tour too, here's the schedule:

Monday - Me

Tuesday - Lisa - Stashmaster

Wednesday - Denise - The Quilter's Window and Monique - Open Gate Quilts

Thursday - Sherri - A Quilting Life

Friday - Carrie - La Vie en Rosie and Nicole - Sister's Choice Quilts

Be sure to stop by each day this week for more Pyramid updates, chances to win Monique's new book, and links to the other participant's blogs.

One last thing, everyone is invited to leave a comment for a chance to win, regardless of your address. However, if you are an international address, you'll receive an electronic book as opposed to the bound book.

I think that's it, let the fun begin!

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