And the winner is...

 

Jeanne Caniglia

 

Jeanne went home with 29 finished blocks and a coupon for free quilting from Tops to Treasures.

 

In celebration of the accomplishment a box of chocolates was also distributed.  Marilyn Pitrone was the lucky winner.

 

CQF Month 9 - March 2013 - Belly Buttons

General Description of Block:  This block is a classic nine patch block, with nine patch blocks used in the corners and center.  The pastle and bright colors are arranged to make circles with multi colored buttons in the middle....belly buttons!

This quilt is so simple that it makes me giddy.  When I'm giddy I can't help but think of my favorite music group - Boys in the Sink.  I know this is a huge step outside my normal box...but in the spirit of silliness here is a special song that I think of every time I hear the words "belly button".  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

 

FQG:  Your kit contains fabric for the background!  You will need to add brights and pastels.   My sample used solids, you do not have to; however please make sure your fabric choices read as solid.  Place the brights where the dark purple is in the picture, and pastels where the light purple is.  You do NOT need to make all of the patches the same.  Think jelly beans or Easter eggs and let the lights and darks do the work for us against the background.

 

Our kit fabric is....The Circus, Multi Banner Circles by Robert Kaufman.  The kit contains a 10 1/2" x 14 1/2" rectangle.  You should have no trouble cutting the pieces you need from this.  You will even  have a tiny piece left over.

 

 

 

Cutting Directions: (49 pieces)

• Kit Fabric (background)
• 8, 2" x 2" squares (for corner blocks)
• 4, 5" x 5" square (for edge blocks)
• Pastels
• 16, 2" x 2" squares
• Brights
• 21, 2" x 2" squares

 

Piecing Directions:

 



Corners:

 

 

Remember - the purples in the pictures are only there to tell you where to put pastel and bright patches.

• Gather
• 8, 2" x 2" squares of background fabric
• 8, 2" x 2" squares pastels
• 20, 2" x 2" squares brights
• Sew 4 sets of 3 blocks each as follows
• A: pastel, background, bright
• B: background, bright, bright
• C: bright, bright, pastel
• Iron seam allowances all in the same direction within each set. 
• A : toward the pastel block
• B: toward the bright blocks
• C: toward the bright block
• Sew 1 from each set (A,B,and C) together to make corner blocks
• Trim blocks to 5" x 5" squares

Center:

 
• Gather
• 8, 2" x 2" squares pastel
• 1, 2" x 2" square bright
• Sew 3 sets of 3 blocks each as follows
• pastel, pastel, pastel
• pastel, bright, pastel
• pastel, pastel, pastel
• Iron seam allowances all to the same direction.
• Sew sets together, making sure that the dark square ends up in the middle....else you will be singing with Mr. Lunt...."I ain't got a belly button!"
• Trim block to 5" x 5" square

Assemble Block:

 



• Gather
• 4, 5" x 5" pieced corners
• 1, 5" x 5" pieced "belly button"
• 4, 5" x 5" squares of background fabric
• Sew 3 sets of 3 blocks each as follows
• corner, with "W" leaning to the left; background; corner with "W" leaning to the right
• background; "belly button"; background
• corner, with "M" lifting it's left leg; background; corner with "M" lifting it's right leg
• Iron seam allowances towards the background fabric
• Sew sets together making sure that the "belly button" is still in the middle.



 

The finished quilt will look something like this....

 

 

Bring your completed block(s) to the March 2013 meeting of the Frisco Quilt Guild to be eligible to enter a drawing to receive the whole bundle.



Starry Night Reminder

Have you finished your block?!

All 30 kits were taken home at our last guild meeting. 
Wouldn't it be awesome to win them all....

as finished blocks?!
 

FQG members, you have two weeks from today to get it done.

If we get all 30 blocks returned at the meeting I will have an extra drawing.
How would you like a Valentine box of chocolates?

"Oops!"

We've all done it.  You know you have.  I know I have.  We're moving right along on our latest project just to discover at the pressing table that we've put one patch in wrong.  "Oops!" is NOT what we say...and I'm not going to tell you what we do say.  You already know that too.

The next series of block patterns is going to focus on 12 classic quilt blocks.  Each block will have a purposeful mistake in it.  The mistake will always be highlighted - that is done in a contrasting color to the rest of the block - so that the whole world can see.

What happens next is magical.

Twelve months of quilts made from 36 of the same 12" finished blocks, all with the same glaring mistake in them.  Just like the rest of my Quilty Friends quilts, these will not be sashed.  (Ya, I know the one at the top of this page is sashed...let's just get over that.)  I hope you are as pleased and surprised as I was when I started playing with them.

Look for the fun to start in June 2013.  That month I will post the last block of "Circle of Quilty Friends" and Month 0 for "Oops!".

Tomorrow is Closer than it Appears

Ever stop to read the print on the bottom of your rear view mirrors?

 "Objects may be closer than they appear"

The same thing can be said of the months in a year.  

We're on month 8 of Circle of Quilty Friends, (I know!  How did that happen?!) and I have been thinking about round 3.  

Whether or not my guild decides to continue with my blocks, I would like to continue writing directions...so I am looking forward.  I have come up with two ideas....although not 24 blocks...yet.

Oops!

The first idea I had was "Oops".  Imagine a series of quilts that are made from traditional blocks messed up on purpose.  Check these out....

"Marching Crabs"

"Marching Crabs is made from goofed up Shoo Fly blocks.

"Snowflake"

"Snowflake" is made from Snowball blocks with a problem.

I like this idea a lot - it makes me laugh - lemon aid from lemons - looking on the bright side.  It seems like it would be a cheery series.  

Au Naturel!

Idea #2 is to take one block "au naturel"  and explore what happens to it as you dress it differently.  The following quilts are all made with the same block.

"Chevron Boxes"

"Harlequin"

"Christmas Ribbons"

"Prickly"

Something Different

These ideas veer from the Quilty Friends ideal.  (12 blocks that hook together making a sampler quilt without sashings or borders.)  The blocks in these series would not be intended to be used that way.  Each block would stand on it's own...although they would be sized the same from month to month...just in case someone wanted to use them in a sampler...and be presented as the key unit in a unique quilt.

What do you think?