Have you ever had to take the backseat to let someone else shine? Let them demand all the glory and attention of the center stage? Whirly Girl was actually intended to be my third pattern release, but in order to work on my Lovebirds' Garden pattern, allowing enough time for testers, she had to graciously step aside. Then a small window opened up only to have Home Sweet Home quietly tiptoe right past her... yet again!?!
... but now she has dusted herself off and is ready for the limelight!
Perhaps you might even recognize her from behind?
Do you remember me mentioning going through my "purple phase"?... well, if we are giving credit where credit is due, then Whrily Girl most likely takes the blame for starting that trend.
Whirly Girl will be my first pattern without applique!?! I know, hard to believe, but I decided that I had to make up for it some way... so she is my first pattern sporting partial (or inset seams) Once you realize how easy partial seams are, you'll think that someone should feel guilty for having given them a bad rap.
Be looking to hear more about her in the weeks to come. Right now she is in good hands with my pattern testers now, but you don't have to wait much longer to have her in yours... Whirly Girl is scheduled for a March 14th release! If you just can't wait to see more, then be sure to check out what my pattern testers are up to on Instagram #whirlygirlquilt.
Quilt: Pattern: Whirly Girl, Campbell Soup Diary - scheduled March 14th, 2019 release
Started: October 2016
Fabrics: Alison Glass, Anna Maria Horner, Carolyn Friedlander, Cotton & Steel, various other designers.
Finished quilt size: ca. 60" x 75" in. (ca. 152 x 190 cm)
Even though I'm usually quite the chatty gal when it comes to writing, today is about short and sweet... I really should be quilting right now to meet my Nadelwelt deadline, but not without stopping in and saying hello first.
... and like I shared last week, felt is the flavor of the month (at least for me it is), but this week it's about mixing mediums. I love combining fabric and paper, and kraft paper is usually my paper of choice - it's natural, it's simple, and it's not fussy. I love adding little decorative stitches to paper too, and this little awl has been a must in my sewing bag for quite some time now.
How about a closer look? Once I finished the applique and hand stitching, I sewed it onto the front of a simple journal... so fun, don't you think?
... and of course I just had to add a few Alison Glass sun print fabrics to give it that strong pop of color... I suppose once a color girl, always a color girl, right?
I've had several questions about how I made and finished this, and I had thought about putting together a little video series after the dust settles... how would you like to join me?
When I was a little girl, I would take a peanut butter sandwich in my school lunch everyday... and I really mean EVERY day. No jelly, just peanut butter. I suppose this went on for years, and I have to admit that I smile inwardly when my littlest asks for a cream cheese sandwich, yup, you guessed it... EVERY day.
While I no longer eat peanut butter sandwiches on a daily basis, I do notice that I have a tendency that when I get in a phase, that I stick with for a while... just like my peanut butter sandwiches. I suppose that the need to get it fully out of my system sometimes doesn't just stop with the first project. And it would appear that felt applique is the current flavor of the month.
I had shared little sneak peeks of my washing symbols project last week, but now they are finished up and ready to go to Nadelwelt. I really wanted to focus on more detailed quilting, and love the way these turned out once they were framed... see, I don't always make just pillows ; )
But as you can imagine, one project snowballs into another, and then into the next... like a potato chip, I couldn't stop with just one, right?!? I shared this sneak peak on Instagram this week of yet another felt applique project that I am working on... quilted up and ready to be turned into? what else...
... another peanut butter sandwich. You can see it coming now, can't you?
Do you have a tendency to get stuck on one favorite technique, pattern, favorite fabric pull like a favorite sandwich?
A friend of mine shared recently with me about a quilting blog that she follows... beautiful and inspiring projects, but the quilter has 97 works-in-progress! To put it mildly, I was blown away. Now, I know I'm not really one to talk about starting new projects, but seriously? NINETY-SEVEN!?!... how does that even happen?!?
Even though it is not evidenced by this post, I've really been making a concentrated effort to be more disciplined with the number of projects that I juggle at one time. I'm a project jumper, which means I flip a lot and need to work on a project until I hit a mental road block, then switch back to an older one. Although I don't suggest this method, for everyone, it actually does work for me... and believe it or not, I still get things finished too without collecting too many WIP's.
Having said all that, let me just explain. A few weeks ago, my husband took me out for a fabulous birthday brunch... just the two of us. You know that feeling that you get when you treat yourself with something special like a fine meal at a fine restaurant? When it's not your everyday, you tend to soak things in, your senses are heightened, and everything tastes divine and just melts in your mouth. When it's accompanied with a beautiful ambiente in a quaint setting to capture and saturate ones thoughts, that feeling is multiplied. As I was looking across at my husband, I have to admit that my gaze keep resting on a vintage embroidery piece that was hanging behind him. As soon as the other guests left, I snapped a few shots to take the memory home with me. Well, as a quilter, you know how it is when something sparks an idea for a quilt... need I really say more?
Perhaps you've had that inner burning when an idea is hitting you like a ton of bricks and rolls along like a frieght train that can't be stopped? That feeling of nearly exploding if you don't translate that idea into something tangible...
... thus, quilt pattern number four. My inspiration piece even comes with it's own story... and I can't wait to share the rest of the story.
Linking up with Let's Bee Social.
