wednesday washday

It's been a while since I made my last block for Ringo Pie. Penny's theme is women's clothing and accessories. Finding this fun paper piecing pattern online, I finally got back in business...

; )

So, after a good start, I am now planning my next block. Thankfully, there are patient women in the bee...

Wish you a wonderful wednesday!

... a love that lasts

for Heather Ross' cute and whimsy designs.

They made my summer holiday pictures idea for Amy's block of Ringo Pie come to life.

And they put a smile on my face every time I get to use my new bag:

I had a workshop with the talented designer Andre Wallenborg. When he is not sewing fantastic leather bags for the norwegian royalty, he gives classes to ladies who love to sew. Great teacher, patient and with step by step instructions he made sure all 15 of us finished a bag in a weekend. A nice person, generous in his sharing of sewing expertise, he has gained a big following among Norwegian quilting ladies. We all love you, Andre!

and trying to catch up...

with another Ringo Pie bee block. Two in one week! Corey asked for "quilts on the line".

This time I pieced the block, no paper involved (apart from the sketch of the design).

The bargello variation quilt is air drying in the mild summer breeze next to some wash (a skirt? a pillowcase?).

I used some of the same fabrics in both 12" (finished size) blocks.

Next up is christmas for Amber and doors for Lisa.

See you later...

... falling a bit behind

on my bee blocks...

When Lynne wanted a british design classic for her month of july, I had a hard time finding a good motif. I do love my morning cup of Twinings Earl Grey, and then it just clicked. Wouldn't you say the tea bag is a british design classic?

One down, I have august, september and ahem january blocks to concentrate on...

Wish you a lovely weekend! Think I'm going to bee busy...

; )

ambitions ...

As I blogged earlier, june is my month of the Ringo Pie Bee. My theme is in the summertime ... and I have been working on a few ideas for designing my block.

One of my favorite things to do is spending a few hours reading ...

in the hammock in our tiny front garden...

smelling the flowers (lavender bush) and watching the occasional butterfly...

fluttering by ...

I might be in trouble now. Aiming high (refering to skills in paperpiecing design & execution). But there's wonderful blocks being created in the bee, and I would like to show that I'm into the task myself...

This sketch is what I'm working from: reading - barefoot - butterflies

Drawing the hammock proved difficult. The feet, too. I am quite worried about actually piecing them. Might end up with no feet and a few butterflies?

Summer is more of a concept than reality, right now. Cold with a sprinkling of rain. Good weather for sewing ...

; )

Do you ever show your plans for sewing, or do you think that is asking for trouble? My excuse is temporary insanity due to the creative wibe in the bee!

( it will take me some time to accomplish this block, since I think I'll have to make two - one for my friend who also suggested reading in a hammock ... ambitions, ambitions...)

you got mail ...

... soon, Ayumi. Just a bit of flying ahead of me ...

Ok, maybe I sound silly, but it is my first original paper pieced block design. So a bit of twittering is ok, I think.

The Ringo Pie {a Patchwork Bee} girls are good at making challenging themes for their month's blocks. May theme was "delivering letters and packages". It took a few attempts and a bit hair-pulling to come up with a good idea.

Inspired by Harry Potter and Sarah, I decided to make a carrier pigeon... started sketching, numbering the pieces, trying to incorporate the beak and the letter. Not easy!

Being a bit late, I started making the block, designing as I pieced. The beak and the letter was solved by using a bit of 3D and adding a separate unit.

June is my month of this bee. My theme is

"in the summertime... things you look forward to, and things you enjoy doing"

I have a few ideas, maybe another paper pieced design is called for? It has to be simple, though!

Summer is still not here, and it's june already. I guess dreaming of summer is as good as it gets these days. Please share with me, what is your favorite activity "in the summertime...". If I use your idea in my bee block, I promise, I will make one for you, too...

; )

... pretty please ...

; ) ; ) ; )

bee friends flimsy

First letters of 2011...

This weekend I pulled out my bee blocks from the Eurovision Quilters. Sketching a bit brought out an idea of organizing the blocks into columns.

Putting all the blocks up on the design wall, my first step was to put their bare feet in some grass, connecting them and emphasize the columns. I chose white to bind it all together, contrasting the sky blue background in the blocks.

Then there was room for more. I had an 10" by 11" free space to fill... and I wanted to add some letters. A bit more planning on paper first:

The dresses are partly from Denyse's Katie Jump Rope line, and as a play on words this phrase just stuck on my mind.

Here they are, all playing nicely together...

The top is 50" * 67" and I have started thinking about batting and backing. One step at a time...

; )

Wish you all a lovely week!

friday finish

A block for Anna of the Ringo Pie Patchwork Bee. Her theme is desserts. My choice is some brownies with a big cup of coffee...

; )

... or just a few pieces of chocolate. The block is 10" square.

I like my big cup of coffee after dinner. The size of the cup is perfect for warming cold fingers. It is still cold, outside. A fine day to sit by the fire...

Wish you all a great weekend!

madness ...

Madness in a good way - I hope...

Some friends from my guild is planning a trip to Tokyo for the 2011 Quilt show. They were lucky enough to have a workshop with Yoko Saito in Norway this spring, and now they are preparing for their next big adventure.

I would love to come along.

But, since that is not likely to happen, I though I like to help them out with their planning. A map of the Tokyo subway would be handy - don't you think?

; )

How very convenient that Elizabeth of Oh, Fransson! is sharing her wonderful creation:

Tokyo Subway Map.

25 blocks of 64 pieces equals 1 600 little (2") squares to be lined up.

That's the madness part of it. Or the perfect opportunity to work on improving my 1/4" seam allowance. I made one adjustment, using 2.5" squares, aiming for a 64" by 80" top, with a back-up plan of 32" by 80" wall quilt.

Somebody once asked me if all my corners match. The answer is a definite NO. I can assure you there's no chance they ever will. Not all of them, anyway. Is that a reason not to make this great quilt?

In my opinion, it's not.

So far, so good...

Inspired by this very quilt, I made my first block for Kerry in the Ringo Pie patchwork bee:

Kerry is the first host and her theme is collecting / hoarding. So how can I relate to that, what am I collecting? You guessed right - fabric! I managed to put a few favorites into the mix of 36 2" squares.

I am so much looking forward to play with all of the creative ladies and their choice of themes!

Back to the madness part. Is it about collecting fabric?

Or is it about starting something new? When you have lots of wip's and ufo's.

Not sure. Maybe a bit of both?

Have fun with your fabric...

; )