Grand Total . . . . . .

Grand Total is one of four plus projects offered by American Patchwork & Quilting for their 2016 APQ Quilt Along.  It's designed by Pat Bravo

 I love the look.  I've been wanting to make a really modern quilt but didn't have a pattern.  Most of the modern quilts I see at shows or online are one of kinds with no pattern.  I was very excited to finally have a pattern to follow.

Then I had to make a fabric decision.

I decided to go with a combo of Flow and For You by Zen Chic for Moda.  This pattern is a breeze to sew, picking out the fabric, it took me hours.  I finally just cut out an assortment of squares and played around with their arrangement on my design wall until I came up with a design that pleased me.

Adding the contrasting detail was very easy once I decided on the main fabric.

And here it is, all done.

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 172

It finished at 68" x 68"

The pattern in Grand Total by Pat Bravo

It has approximately 931 pieces.

The print fabric is by Zen Chic for Moda

I went very conservative not he background fabric since the big plus pattern was pretty bold.

I did use two different white on white prints for the background, it's subtle, but it's there.  The background fabric is CarKai and Doe by Carolyn Friedlander for Robert Kaufman.

Are you following along on instagram?

There are 2014, 2015 and 2016 projects being added every day.  

No sewing for me the rest of this week, I'm heading to Quilt Con!  I'm so excited, it's the first time I've attended that show. I'm equally excited about the weather, it's unseasonably warm in Pasadena right now, which makes up for the 6 inches of snow I shoveled Sunday!

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Moda Sampler Shuffle

Moda is partnering with quilt shops to create a sampler quilt.  Three blocks are posted each week as a download by participating quilt shops on their websites.   The patterns are free and available for a limited time.  It started the end of October and runs through early January. I like sew alongs and I like samplers but I was still dragging my feet about joining the fun.  Then I started seeing some great blocks on social media and started thinking about fabric I would like to use.

Once I decided to use Modern Background Ink and Modern Background Paper by Zen Chic for Moda I couldn't help but start cutting and sewing.

And Ive already made my first 4 blocks!

I've been working on these blocks in little chunks of time, usually in the morning.  It's a great project for a busy time of year, they go together quickly so I feel like I'm accomplishing something, even if it's a little something.  Give it a try if you're looking for a little something to squeeze into your days (or nights)

(Shuffle details here)

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Two Things . . .

Thing One - A few posts back I mentioned struggling with finding a perfect pattern for some of the fabric in my stash, and finding the perfect fabric for some patterns I want to make.  Several folks commented they were struggling with the same dilemma.  When I'm trying to decide what to do with a family of fabric I like to search Google and Pinterest to see what other clever and creative quilters are making with that fabric.  The longer the fabric has been out there, the more finishes you may see.  

I had been looking for a good project for my Figures by Zen Chic for Moda bundle for months and couldn't find anything that suited me, but I didn't give up, I just kept searching.  I finally found a great free online sampler pattern by Sharon at Color Girl Guilts.  (click here for pictures and block patterns)    This made me realize that any sampler pattern is the perfect solution for any family of fabric, you can decide the block size, the setting, and the quilt size, the possibilities are endless!  So if you're looking for that perfect pattern for some of your fabric, look into a sampler! 

(Even though the pattern is a free online pattern, I still checked with the designer to make sure she was OK with me making something very similar using her pattern and the same fabric. )

Thing Two -  When Viola isn't Viola!  When this pattern was released by Miss Rosie's Quilt Company I was excited for several reasons, I love a good basket pattern and have a soft spot for the word "Voila".  When my daughter and I were in Paris, and the cab driver dropped us off at the Eiffel Tower,  he must have sensed our excitement because he said, "Voila".  For the rest of that trip, and trips since, whenever a cab drops us off at our destination we say, "Voila".  So with that in my head, when I saw this pattern I immediately read "Voila", not "Viola", because really, doesn't this pattern look like a "Voila"!  If I had a twin I think she would have been named Viola, it's right up there with Esther and Thelma in my book.  So now you get to decide do you want to make Viola or Voila? I'm making Voila!

But that's not the only problem, in the pattern, Carrie Nelson, the pattern designer, doesn't call those flower receptacles baskets, she calls them vases! Do those bases look like vases to you? So even though technically this won't qualify as my annual basket quilt, and the name is Viola not Voila, I'm still making it!  I hope you are too!

Here's the fabric I pulled for my baskets/vases/bases, 16 different shades of blue.

My petals are going to look very similar to my cheese crackers.

I hope to start cutting and piecing Voila next week.  Nicole has a wrist injury, she's hoping to start next week too.  It's not a race, just join in when you can and sew at your own pace. If you are sewing along let us know what fabric you're using and how you're progressing.  Leave a comment or send an email, pictures would be great! I think Sinta has started but has a busy weekend, look for her update on her blog, hopefully soon.  (Sandy, you've started already but I'm including you in our sew along, or maybe we're joining you!  Send me pics of your progress if you don't want to blog!)

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Otis, not THAT Otis!

When I hear the name Otis I immediately think of Otis Campbell, the town drunk on Mayberry, a TV show from the 60s.  I know Carrie Nelson sometimes comes up with odd names for her quilts, but I sure couldn't figure out how such a beautiful quilt pattern could be named after a town drunk!  Turns out it's not, this Otis is for Otis Redding, the singer songwriter who likes to sit on the dock of the bay.  I'm still not sure what that has to do with this quilt, but then no one asked me, and honestly I can't come up with a better name, so Otis it is.

This is Lifetime Quilt Number 153

The fabric is For You by Zen Chic for Moda

It finished at 76" x 76"

It has approximately 1,210 pieces.

The pattern is Otis by Carrie Nelson for Miss Rosie's Quilt Company.

Both the pattern and fabric are now available in shops near you or your fingertips.  For some reason this line of fabric did not get a lot of buzz at Spring Market, I don't know why, it is wonderful!  So wonderful you better go get some right now, you'll be disappointed if you don't.  The fabric looks great as a family but will also blend well with other fabrics.  You can make Otis from a For You fat eighth bundle.  But get the Fat Quarter Bundle, then you'll have leftovers!

To get a better look at the fabric click here.

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