Monday, March 30, 2015

Monday Musings


 Last week I made the trip back to my favorite 
local quilt shop, Miller's Dry Goods. My mind and 
eyes were tuned into a different fabric selection, 
and I wasn't disappointed. I was looking for, and found, 
some highly patterned, and colorful floral pieces. 

My latest inspiration comes from a book I've
highlighted here several times, and is one
of my favorite go-to reads--


This incredibly scrap-inspired quilt is the work
of Katie Pedersen, who blogs as Sew Katie Did.
I just love it!



I've been on a HST kick this year, and have written
about my frustration using pre-cuts when making 
them. The feedback I received was full of ideas, 
but two names kept coming up. One was Bloc-Loc 
for their squaring-up rulers. When I decided on this 
concept as my next project, and realized the extent 
of workI contacted Bloc-Loc. We talked about my 
ideas,and they were gracious to send me a ruler 
to use as a demo here on Pink Doxies.


I was sent a 6.5" squaring up ruler. Bloc-Loc's suggestion
in their directions say to use one inch up, so a 7.5" 
square to start. I didn't have anything that large in
my scraps to use so I hit my stash--hard!
I have over 50 fabrics cut into squares or strips
at this point--



...and another 140 or so to go!
I went after pieces that I've never used 
before first, and filled in with others.


My trusty He-Man Ruler has been very helpful. My 
tendency with plastic rulers is to lose contact
with the edge right at the end, and it causes a 
swerve or divot in my strip. The heavier ruler
with the gripping foam underneath it helps
hold the fabric in place all the way to the end.

This is the idea of a finished block. I am already
willing to say I am notably impressed with the 
accuracy and ease of the Bloc-Loc ruler,
but floored by the increased speed I can work.
So far, SO Wonderful, Bloc-Loc!


 Also on my list of daily lessons to grow my skills is
to visit the Leah Day Free Motion Quilting Project.
Every single day I do something. There is a vast 
improvement in my skills even from the first 
video until now. It's FREE, and I'm so grateful
for all the resources packed in there.




I keep practicing so I can link up with
Thursday's when she hosts a link up party.

blogbutton photo peacockfmq025_zpse5bceb10.jpg

 My days are going in all directions, it seems,
but I feel I'm moving forward like the coming
of spring is. There are so many new things to
learn when you're trying to grow.

I'd love to hear what things you're working on
or how you're trying to grow your skills.
Please take a minute and let me know 
today in the comments.

I'm so honored to be 
featured today on~

Sew Cute Tuesday

and also at

Quilt Story



I'm linking up today with~

Time for work!
Come on, Doxie Girls.
Let's go sew.





9 comments:

  1. I've been wanting a bloc loc for so long!!! I love your fabric choices and am glad you are enjoying your new ruler.

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  2. Your fabric selections are gorgeous. Very smart to contact Bloc-loc...nice that they sent you a ruler to test drive. I have seen this ruler at quilt shows and it seems to work very well. Nice to hear the same from you. They are just a little pricey, in my opinion. Good luck with the quilt - it looks like a beauty.

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  3. Thanks for the inspiration you spread today on Show and Tell Monday and for your linking there / Hug Bambi and Happy Easter Glad Påsk!!Julie

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  4. Love the scrap quilt idea.. you have a great selection of fabrics all cut & ready to go! And it looks like that ruler makes it all that much easier! I struggle with fmq, thanx for the link it looks helpful! Linda

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  5. I just recently bought a Bloc_Loc ruler and am really liking it. I have a whole stack of HSTs to trim and the ruler has been really helpful. I'm so happy they sent you one to review - smart move to contact them! :)

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  6. Loving the fabrics. I love to hear about what book you are using and what tools make the job easier. Thank you for sharing.

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  7. It was so nice to read all you are going to do and to do little FMQ every day must be very good for the future!

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  8. Congratulations on being featured!! You picked up some beautiful fabrics. Have fun :)

    -Soma

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Thoughtful comments are Honey to My Heart! Thank you for taking time to leave such words. Feel free to email me directly with any specific questions at julie@pinkdoxies.com
Julie
Pink Doxie Mama