Birdhouse Blocks!

So, I fell in love with a panel of fabric recently and so I have been planning and drawing a new quilt pattern all around the one panel. It has a medallion type center and I am incorporating some of the blocks I have been learning to make. However, I am having to adjust the sizing and that is hard work for my non-math-gifted brain. It's been 17 years since I took a math class!

So, I am so excited I started with this birdhouse block. This is new to me. Is this what they call paper-piecing? I'm not sure. But, I definitely did it. Here's how:

1. I drew that sketch on paper.
2. Then I cut those pieces and decided color schemes.
3. After that, I cut 4 of each piece. I cut around the piece of paper pattern by leaving and extra quarter inch border around the pattern.
4. Then I started sewing piece by piece by number to make sure each piece was in the right spot.
5. Below it shows how that looked at the first two pieces and the about halfway through.
6. Voilah!

Banana Oat Pancakes

So I'm doing this "no flour" thing and it's going pretty well but sometimes I just miss bread! I stumbled across this recipe after a friend mentioned something like it in passing. Of course, I altered it (I find that if I don't follow directions I can't feel like I failed when I try new stuff and it doesn't quite turn out)...so here it goes...

I blended three eggs with two bananas and added about 1/2 c. milk (could be almond or soy or whatever), a splash of vanilla and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Then I added 1-1/2 c. whole oats. Other recipes I saw added oil and baking soda and powder. I didn't add those but I think they would have been fluffier if I had. I did cook in a hot pan with coconut oil! So yummy though!

Picture from: http://onceuponarecipe.wordpress.com

Stawberry*Rhubarb Pie

It's that time of year folks! Well, not quite, but it's getting close and I am stoked!

April's Block

April's Block of the Month...Rolling Stone.

This one was a little tougher. How do the professionals do it so easily? That whole matching up seams and corners is tough for me. I think I'm improving, but it's still a challenge and I don't have any patience!

15 down, 49 to go!

Happy Easter Table Runner

Sewing strips of fabric in springy patterns and colors to each other and then cut it out in an egg-like shape. I have a patterns but I didn't really follow it. Super quick and easy!

Disappearing 9 Patch Quilt

This was a quilt in a day class I took at a local fabric store. It was fun to learn some new skills from our very talented, experienced quilt master!

You start with an equal amount of light and dark squares measuring 6.5"x6.5". Therefore, if you want the quilt to be 12 large squares, you need 24 light and 24 dark. For 20 squares, you need 40 light and 40 dark.

Then you start chains sewing the lights to the darks and then sewing two of those together.

Once you have done that, you start cutting the squares into 9 pieces by using a 4.5" ruler and lining it up on the outside edge. Make a cut. The rotate it 90* and cut and continue until you have made 4 cuts all the way around the edges.

Then you take the middle pieces around the edges and flip the 180*.

Then you assemble these into a 9 patch.

This process is pretty time consuming as each square is unique and you only do one at a time. This is as far as I got in my class!

Then you add sashing (11.5"x2.5" strips in all one color) between each block (so block, sash, block, sash, block, sash, block). First sewing rows together. Then sew rows of sash and and cornerstones (2.5" squares in contrasting color) together. Then sew row to sashing strip and then row and so on.

I'm not done but it's pretty close!

March's Bow Ties

So this is month three of my Saturday Sampler quilt class. This is a bow tie pattern but it could be spruced up if you wanted.

This month we only had one square again! It took more time to cut the pieces than to assemble them! This is nice because I learn a new pattern and it goes fast. However, then I have to be creative and fill the rest of the month's hours!

I'm working on some other stuff...post to follow!