Wednesday, May 13, 2015

Quilt Lovely 'She Loves You' Blocks



Cleaning up the studio is always my priority
after finishing a big project. I couldn't bear 
sorting such a mess, and I decided I needed a 
color fix instead. Out came Jen Kingwell's 
Using Piecing and Applique, and I turned to 
this heart block I had been playing with for a
few days. Perfect for your tiniest scraps,
pieces ranges from 1" squares to 1"x4".



Although I am inspired by her designs in the
book, I am most intrigued by Kingwell's wide 
use of fabric variety. Most of us have both
vintage and modern fabrics in our stash, and 
if you're like me, it's mostly an Either/Or Thing.
Let's face it, our old dark green, navy, and 
maroon, are not easily blended with our
aqua and orange. Surprisingly, she does 
this a lot in the book, and it looks good!
Part of my book lovin' here is in breaking
down and analyzing how she blended
them so well. I already see a 'Daisy Do' 
in my near future.



My first block was totally botched. My 
mind was wandering to 'How was our Lucy
dog doing having 2 teeth removed?' to
'Did the new baby arrive yet?' You have to
keep your head in the game here.


I didn't view it as a total loss, though, when I 
saw the outer piecing needed to have more
contrast. Taking pictures helps me more than
anything. 

Next try below: The low-volume background 
needs to be more uniform. The khaki strips are 
bit too dark in the block, I think.


I switched from the Anna Marie Horner scraps
to some strips of Amy Butler's new Violette.
Both warm and cool tones in the palette, I
looked for a background fabric to unify it.
The paisley is very traditional while the 
Butler line steps toward the modern side.
Very subtle contrast, but I'll try framing
it out today. A zipper bag in the making.


Even though I left yet another mess to deal
with tomorrow, it was time for a walk in the 
garden with the dogs. 


Lucy was home and recovered when I snapped
this picture of my orris root in bloom. It looks
like a common iris. Something moved across
my feet, and it wasn't a Doxie girl.


It was this not-so-little guy. Two dogs stepped 
right over it on the way to see me so
I felt safe.


Every year I think it's the last for my tree peony,
and every year the gnarly thing blooms.
Gorgeous, short-lived, giant blooms.


Today I'll be a slave to the house and yard,
but I'll be back Friday for the big reveal of
the QST quilt. I've been dragging it around
to local quilt groups playing Show and Tell.
Thank you all for bearing with me.

I hope you make time for yourself during 
this busy season, and better yet if it
includes time to sew.

Congratulations on a new baby boy in the
family to all the anxious relatives that 
awaited his arrival! Welcome!

Come on, Doxie girls.
I'll make up a thermos of tea,
and then let's go sew for just a bit.

Linking up with~
My Quilt Infatuation
Quilting Jet Girl
Freshly Pieced
Sew Fresh Quilts

15 comments:

Ann said...

You and I are so on the same page right now (including a picture of our cutting tables this week!) I think we must have been separated at birth! I just got my copy of Quilt Lovely delivered yesterday, and am in a total brainspin about which quilt to do first! I love Glitter, Flutterby, and Bonnie Lass. Daisy Do is great too, but all that hand-piecing is really not for me. Another reason we need to be besties: your hearts are almost all AMH and that's what my current project is about too! Too funny.
Can't wait to see more stuff you do from the book!

Mary Huey said...

I enjoyed your "color and value" musings!! Delightful blocks and are they little? They appear to be.

Kaja said...

What a clever block, I can see why you like it and it's really interesting to see your different attempts, what works and what doesn't. Looks like a cool book.

Mary maloney said...

I love the way your block turned out. I think you should make a quilt with this combination. It really is nice.

Debra said...

Julie, I just love your color choices. Always, fresh, fun and interesting. Why is it that someone else's fabrics always look so much better than our own - LOL. Love these heart log cabin blocks. How wide are your logs?.. Look like 1/2". This makes me want to run to my sewing machine!!

sisterview.com said...

So pretty! I love your fabric choices.

Deb Chimes said...

Very impressed with your patience and perseverance in creating three versions of these blocks! The third attempt is definitely my favourite. Can't wait to see what you make with it!

Aunt TC said...

I would have screamed and run for the hills!

Julie said...

Honestly, there was a little shriek. The garter snake was every bit of 2 feet long, and I rang my daughter to come outside and identify it 'for sure'. I value snakes in my garden, but the day I watched a 5' black snake go up the wall of the house, and into a roller shutter was creepy. I begged the 3 men here to pull it out, and we bagged it for a long trip out to our farm in the country. This area gets an ocassional rattle snake, copperhead, and water mocassin so we are vigilant without being panicky. He was actually quite cute once I saw he was just a garter.

Note: None of this calm control applies to spiders.

Julie

LA Paylor said...

what fun!!! I had a lot of fun with this post. I made a very similar pattern 20 years ago but it was larger. The pattern told you all the sizes and cuts to make before you even started, and you laid the pieces on the pattern itself keeping it all in total order!
I like your discussion of value and color, and all the great pics to illustrate it. Cole says hi to the doxies!
LeeAnna

Yvonne from Quilting Jetgirl said...

I personally think all 3 hearts are lovely. Sometimes the mind definitely wanders with everything clamoring for "I'm important!" attention. Glad you were able to create, and get outside for a walk with a healthy and recovered pup.

Julie said...

Finished width of each strip is 1/2". Block finishes at 7". It's teeny tiny work, and I've sneezed away pieces working with a cold.

It's so funny that you say this because I do the same thing when I see things someone else puts together. I literally stand at my stash with one fabric, and move it up and down the rows to see what tickles me most.

Shauna said...

I love the hearts, I love the mix of fabrics you used on each of them. I wouldn't have gotten the photo of the snake because I would have been passed out on the ground.

Ruth said...

I'm not great with things that have less than 2 legs or more than 4 so i would have been running screaming despite calm dogs beside me! Love Jen Kingwells use of colour and sometimes a day exploring colour with fabric is called for every now and again!

Cathy said...

That looks like my kind of book! Oh, and I enjoyed your thoughts on all the different blocks. In one big quilt...they would all look marvelous together (in my mind).