Circle 7 : My Starter Panel

                                                  

So one of my favorite quitly things going on right now is being part of the Circle 7 bee.  Essentially, each person in the bee created a starter panel and set a theme for her quilt, which would then be passed along to each other person, everyone adding their part to her quilt.  Since the first traveling quilts bee began, the idea of creating a quilt with a group of friends in this way - where there is tons of room for improv and creativity - was super appealing to me. So when Jenn asked me to join a group of women I hugely respect and admire to make quilts in this way, I didn't even have to think about it.  Of course I wanted to be a part of that!  The hardest part was finalizing a theme for a quilt.  I ultimately chose to make a quilt with pieced words and favorite patchwork.

Here is the starter panel I made for my quilt.

 I free pieced the word "Smile" - this is quickly becoming one of my favorite things to do!   It takes me forever, but I'm always happy with how it turns out, and I love that I can write whatever I want.

Next I made this Carpenter Wheel block.

This is the colorway I chose for the quilt.  Without a doubt, one of my favorite parts about quilting is pulling fabric combinations.  The possibilities are endless!

I sent out my starter panel at the end of May, and I've been giddy watching my friends add to it over the past few months.  I am so excited to see how it makes it's way back home to me!  Watching the quilts evolve and change with each step along the way is so exciting.  A huge thank you to Jenn for gathering us together.  I am so thankful to create with this wonderful group of women!

Quick Flying Geese Tutorial

Here is a quick tutorial for Flying Geese really written as instructions for my fellow Stitch Teasers since its my month to be Queen Bee.  It's pretty basic, and there are tons of tutorials out there for these - but I'm going old school back to the basics for these this month which allows for lots of variety for this quilt.

So, Stitch Tease Bee Mates:

This is what we're going to make this month.  Let's just pretend all these flying geese are all joined together nice and pretty for one giant block that will finish at 15" x 20".  It's made of 24 individual flying geese that measure 3" x 5 1/2".

This is our color palette inspiration:

                                                          (Source: Design-seeds.com)

You will need to cut:
24 assorted prints 3 inches  x  5 1/2 inches
   Magentas and Golds (I would love to stick to only the colors in this palette)
   Maybe a couple (no more than 3 please!) Medium gray prints randomly in the mix too!

48 assorted low volume 3 inch squares
   White/Off-white with gray - very soft

Construction:

Draw a line corner to corner on the wrong side of the 3 inch square.  (I just mark it with a Hera Marker).

Line up a square on top of the rectangle of fabric that will be your "goose", Right Sides Together.  Sew directly on this line and trim 1/4 inch away from line for seam allowance.  Press.  (Don't throw away those trimmed triangle scraps - they will make a lovely half square triangle for another project!  I usually go ahead and sew them up right away so they're already done.)

Repeat on the other side - Sew on the marked line, trim 1/4 inch away and press.

Done!  Pay attention to the top of the block - there should be 1/4 inch on top of the triangle's point.  This is important so that when the blocks are sewn together, the goose's beak doesn't get chopped off!

Then just arrange the geese in a random layout (geese pointing up in one direction please!).

These come together really quickly and hopefully won't be too much trouble for my bee mates - Thanks y'all!
I can't wait to see this quilt come together!  I'm so enjoying being in this group :)

Guest Blogging today over at Ellison Lane!

                                 

Y'all hop on over to Ellison Lane where I am guest blogging today with a tutorial for these iPad/e-reader Carrying Cases!

THE Quilt

You guys!  What on earth?!  How is it possible it's been months - MONTHS! - since I have last been on this blog?  How can that be?  Summer - ahh, summer - it has lingered, and lingered, and clung for ever-lovin' mercy to our doorstep.  We have had a ton of fun, aaaaaaannnnnd, we are ready to all be back in school.  It's time.  Mama needs to sew ;).

OK. I have been itching to share this quilt with you.  THE quilt.  This quilt was made by my sweet friends in That Stash Bee.  April was my month to be queen bee and I knew for a while what I wanted to ask for.  I wanted to make a quilt for my dear friend Claudia and her family as they endure the loss of Michael.  I knew I wanted to make them something to cuddle up in, that would provide some comfort, maybe even some cheer during some dark times.  Since the first quilt I ever made was for them, with the embroidered words Faith, Hope and Love, I thought it was the perfect time to revisit those words.  Gentle reminders of some important things, and my constant prayers for them.  So, I asked my bee mates for colorful stars (whichever stars they wanted to make) and if anyone was up for a challenge, a pieced letter/word to make up those three words.

 Well, my friends blew me away with their generosity and creativity!  Honestly, I was thinking if a few people did a letter - one letter! - it would help me out, so I was stunned when several of these gorgeous pieced words popped up.  And the stars!  So many varying shapes and sizes - literally every single block that came my way was absolutely perfect and just what this quilt needed.

This is the back - in my mind, just as great as the front.  I pieced that LOVE banner as my starter for the quilt.

We were traveling to see them over the summer and I was strongly hoping I would have the quilt done to give them in person.  The members of this bee, in addition to being wildly talented, are very diligent and reliable.  Thanks to them, I was able to finish in time for our trip - hand-stitching the binding on during the car ride up.  

Being able to share this gift in person was such a special moment.  Our friends are living moment to moment every day missing their son, and the first thing Claudia said as she opened it with tears in her eyes was how much Michael would have loved it because of all the colors.  I enjoyed sharing how this quilt was a collective effort made by a group of people, and as we poured over every inch, we discovered several special touches.  Like on this giant star made by Kelsey - one of the fabrics had dates on it including the year Michael was born.  

 And on this little star made by my friend Nicole, a bird - one of Michael's favorite things.  Several of the blocks had fabrics that had a bird of some kind on it - I had never shared their significance with the group.  Another example was deer fabric, and Michael loved hunting with his Daddy.  So many small reminders, rich with significance.

 I am in deep gratitude to my friends in That Stash Bee for helping me to create such a meaningful gift:

Toni 

 Kelli

Debbie

Nicole

Whitney

Cathy

Kelsey

Michonne

Katie

I am thankful to count you among my friends - it is an honor to sew with you all.

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Modern Mini Challenge! Update: City Color is the winner of this Challenge!

Yay!  It's that time again, when loads of inspiration in the form of mini quilts can be seen on Jennifer's blog at Ellison Lane Quilts.  What a clever idea Jennifer has had (she's full of those great ideas, isn't she?!).  

So, I hope you don't mind my sharing a quilt you may have seen already.  It really is one of my favorites, and it now hangs above my sewing machine where I see it all the time.  I grew up in Chicago, so this colorful little quilt reminds me of so many good memories from those years.  

Quilt Name:  City Color

Size:  18"x23"

Designed, Pieced, and Quilted by Valerie Luberecki (me!)

It's called City Color, and was made in response to a challenge activity from the Triangle Modern Quilt Guild where we were all given the same 3 prints and told to make something reflecting city life.  We were allowed to add whatever fabrics we wanted as well, as long as the original three were also included.  It was fun to use the Velocity print as the background - I love the depth it creates!  

Thank you Jennifer, for hosting us all in this mini quilt party.  You encourage creativity, and I can think of no greater thing.  

Let's Get Acquainted!

Welcome everyone visiting from the Plum and June's Blog Hop!  What a fun event Beth has pulled together - a clever way for us to get to know each other a bit better.  I thought for my stop on the hop that I would put up some Between Quilt soundbytes to give you a snapshot of what's going on around here.  

1.  I accidently fell into quilting about 10 years ago (that includes a three year hiatus from sewing when I had 3 kids under 3 years old.  Yup, I'm still recovering from those years in more ways than one.)

2.  My All-Time-Favorite Quilt I've made is probably this one, called Racing Stripes.  I made it in 2011 for the Kona Solids challenge with the Triangle Modern Quilt Guild.  It has been featured on Modern Day Quilts, 100 Days of Modern Quilting, and was exhibited in an art show called Throw:  Great Lengths of Innovation in Modern Quilting.

3.  My Favorite Recent Finish - a wall hanging I made for my oldest son's kindergarten teachers.  I am so proud of how hard my little man worked this year, and reading has been a major part of the past year.  What an amazing thing to watch a confident reader emerge!  Our family is a lover of books so this seemed just the right thing to make for them.  I confess, though, it turned out MUCH larger than originally intended and I was almost embarrassed to give it to them.  Something 6 feet large isn't exactly subtle, and I didn't want them to feel like it had to go up if they didn't like it.  Thankfully, they seemed to really enjoy it so I think all is well!

4.  My Favorite Recent-Block-Finish.  This ones called Dutch Rose and I found the pattern for free online.

 I made it to go in my Circle 7 Bee starter panel, which ended up like this.  This traveling quilt will come back to me next December after 6 of my friends have added to it.  I cannot wait to see what it looks like in the end!

5.  A Quilt-I-Love-But-Will-Never-Make-Again.  Come on, we all have them - that quilt that was such a painstaking labor of love that we swear with every stitch "Never Again."  And I think I mean it.  But I do love how it turned out (pattern Love Beads by Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr) and it now lives on the wall in my parents family room, where my mom swears it is loved everyday.  Good enough for me.  And I have learned never to say never, so maybe someday I will tackle this again.  But really, probably not.

6.  My Favorite I-Started-This-Design-Then-Promptly-Stashed-It-Away-For-The-Past-Eight-Months-And-Don't-Know-When-I'll-Get-Back-To-It Quilt.  Ay-yi-yi, what can I say about this one?!  I like it just fine, and certainly spent enough money buying the fabric for it.  But something about the design isn't quite right, so I set it aside.  Someday, I will figure out the answer, and tackle it fast and furious.  This quilt will see it's day!  Please tell me that you too, have an least one project like this?  Pretty please??

7.  I'm starting a Charity Quilt Drive called Quilt Lemonade.  Details coming soon, but here is the first quilt I made for that group.

8.  Hmmm, what else can I tell you??  I'm a stay at home mom (former LCSW - who knows when I'll get back to that?!) to three kiddos and married to my best friend.  None of what I do would be possible without my sweet hubby, who even holds down the fort at times so I can go to places like Sewing Summit, Quilt Con and Sew South.  I'm blessed beyond words.

Be sure to check out all the other great blogs in the hop - loads of great inspiration to be found in this group!

Friday, June 7th

Amy @ 13 Spools

Ashley @ Wasn't Quilt In A Day

Casey @ The Studiolo 

Nanette @ Yeah, I Made That

Ange @ Heart Of Charnwood

Kim @ Robot Mom Sews

Erica @ Kitchen Table Quilting

Friday, June 14

Julie @ Jolie Maxtin

Melissa @ Melia Mae Quilting

Adrianne @ On The Windy Side

Molli @ Molli Sparkles

Laura @ Little And Lots

Sarah @ Duck Egg Threads

Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation

Cari @ There's A Thread

Valerie @ Between Quilts (me!)

Friday, June 21

Leigh Anne @ Ella's Cottage

Stacy @ The Tilted Quilt

Sarah @ Quilt Candy

Jackie @ NW Patchwork

Liz @ Beadqueene's Bits And Baubles

Erica @ Happy Fabric

Stephanie @ Simple Sewendipity

Lauren @ Seraphym

Amy @ Cloud CouCou Crafts

Friday, June 28

Green @ So Sew Green

Gwendellyn @ The Rainbow Revolts

Jessica @ Stitched In Thyme

Amira @ Little Mushroom Cap

Kathy @ Kayak Quilting

Michelle @ Factotum Of Arts

Paula @ The Sassy Quilter

Kris @ Sew Sunshine

Camilla @ Faffling

Friday, July 5

Christa @ Christa Quilts!

Alyce @ Wonderland By Alyce

Anna @ The Crooked Banana

Rachel @ Sew Happily Ever After 

Stephanie @ Quarter Incher

Kristy & Shayla @ Sassafras Lane Designs

Caroline @ Carolines Craftiness

Lisa @ Hilltop House Creative Works

Fridau, July 12

Leona @ Leona's Quilting Adventure

Karen @ Karen, {Novice} Quilter

Anne @ PlayCrafts

Rachel @ Let's Begin Sewing...

Jan @ Sew And Sow Farm

Anna @ Quilting Along The Grain

Cath @ Wombat Quilts

Sarah @ {No} Hats In The House

Friday, July 19

Karen @ Little Birdie Quilting Studio

Kathy @ Kwilty Pleasures

Katie @ Snuggle Up With A Dish From Karma 

Alison @ Making Happyness

Sarah @ Sowing Stitches

Ella and Nesta @ Ella & Nesta's Little Room

Adrienne @ Chezzetcook Modern Quilts

Nicole @ Modern Handcraft

Aylin @ AyliN-Nilya

Friday, July 26

Vicki @ A Quilter's Mission

RobinSue @ RobinSue Quilts

Elisa Lea @ Lovelea Designs

Elizabeth @ In The Boondocks

Jenny @ A Note To Follow Sew

Lorna @ Sew Fresh Quilts

Sonia @ Fabric & Flowers

Emily @ Sew E.T.
Em @ sewing by moonlight

So, there you have a little snapshot of me.  I started this blog about 2 years ago simply so I could be part of the ongoing conversation that is the online sewing community, and it has certainly been a source of joy and inspiration to me. I wish someday I could sit down with each of you, share a cup of coffee, and chat about what's going on with you.  And of course, fabric.  It always comes back to that.  
Until that day my friends, I'll see you in blogland!
Valerie