Exactly The Same, Only Different

     I fancy myself a rule follower.  If there are rules in place, I like to think of myself as someone that will follow them - for the most part.  Who am I kidding?  Let's say that I think I follow all of the big important rules.  The truth is, I just like to know what the rules are in any given situation.  I like to know the meaning behind those rules and why they were created.  Then I can make an informed decision as to when to break them.  Especialy when it comes to quilting.

    My latest Jaftex challenge included this assortment of Kaleidographics fabric by Susan Lind for Blank Quilting and a pattern from Villa Rosa Designs.

    If you have been quilting for any length of time you are probably familiar with Villa Rosa patterns.  They are full color, postcard size patterns, with the quilt image on one side and everything you need to know to make the project on the other.  They are often given away in goodie bags or at shop hops.  Pat, who owns Villa Rosa has hundreds of them to choose from.  Fun designs that use pre-cuts, fat quarters and yardage.  Most quilt shops have an assortment of Villa Rosa Designs available on their checkout counter or very near their pattern selection. 

    As you can imagine, with only a postcard size space to provide the materials list and complete instructions, the information is limited to only the facts.  I call these "Joe Friday" instructions.  You have to be of a certain age to understand that reference.  While the instructions may be brief, rest assured that all of the Villa Rosa patterns tell you everything you need to know to complete the quilt top.

    I chose to use the Diamond Daze pattern for the Kaliedographics fabrics.  The pattern is written for 8 fat quarters - check.  1 1/4 yard of background fabric - I chose to use a solid white.  You also need 3/4 yard of fabric for the border on the left and right side of the quilt - that was going to be a problem.  Jaftex is very generous with their fabrics for the Brand Ambassadors.  Instead of fat quarters I had full one yard cuts.  Setting one print aside for the border didn't didn't seem to compliment the fun designs in the center of the quilt.  I decided to make that decision when the center section was assembled.  I always have solid black on hand, so that could be an option?

    The quilt top went together very quickly!  The large quarter square triangles were easy to piece.  Arranging them in vertical rows with spacer strips was also fast and fun.  I chose to use the same two fabrics in each block so that spacing the prints was easier. I had 4 color combinations in the large blocks and 8 options of spacer strips to place between them.  Super easy!

    Then it was time to deal with that border. I decided that instead of following the rules of the pattern, it was better to do what was right for the quilt.  With plenty of extra fabric on hand, I pieced the border using the same fabrics in the quilt top.  Having more fabric than you need always makes it easier to solve your problems!  I pieced a border strip by cutting the pieces the width that was indicated on the pattern.  I cut the length of those pieces to match the quarter square triangle blocks and the spacer strip.  The pattern calls for border on only two sides of the quilt.  Don't try this at home - unless you buy half yards instead of fat quarters!

    The backing fabric came right out of my stash.  It feels good to use something that has been waiting on my shelf for the opportunity to shine.  This quilt "feels" like a quilt a boy would appreciate.  I chose to quilt it on my longarm using a flame design.  It looks great!  A bit of black binding and this Kaleidographics version of the Diamond Daze pattern is in the books!  Click HERE to see the Kaleidographics fabrics and the free patterns from Blank Quilting.

Tricks and More Tricks

    Spring is well underway here in north Florida.  The mid 70's-80's temperatures are delightful.  Flowering plants and lush greenery are everywhere.  The glorious weather makes it difficult to stay inside.  I decided that today would be a perfect opportunity to take a few of my to-do list items on a road trip as an excuse to get out of the house.  It is always fun to find someplace special to photograph finished quilts. I have two Jaftex projects, both made with fabric lines from Blank Quilting waiting to be photographed.

    1.  Little Monsters,

    2.  All Spruced Up.

    Hmm... Where, on an island, in north Florida, in glorious springtime, can I find a haunted backdrop to photograph a Halloween quilt?  

    Crane Island!  I think the small island on the inland side of Amelia Island would be perfect.  You might not think that the location where the 2019 Southern Living Idea House was built (currently for sale for $6.85 million dollars) would be the perfect place for creepy, haunted photos.  I'm not talking about the professionally landscaped, not a blade of grass out of place, lawns of the mini mansions.  I'm talking about the public park with the old growth oak trees covered in Spanish moss just outside the gated community.  Southerners LOVE Spanish moss.  To me, it looks creepy.

    I asked my favorite quilt wrangler (my husband) to come along on this adventure.  He is always willing to help (and at 6' tall he makes a great temporary quilt stand).  We hopped on our bikes, tossed the quilt in the bike basket and made the short, 4 mile ride to Crane Island.  

    The bright blue skies and sunshine took the edge off the creepy look, which was fine with me. The prints in the Little Monsters fabric line are cute, not scary.  Images of candy and kids in costumes, friendly spiders and silly skulls are featured in the prints.  Emily Elizabeth designed this line for Blank Quilting.  Click on that link to see the two free projects that Blank Quilting is offering featuring these fabric prints.

 

     It might seem odd to be making a Halloween sample in April, but this fabric line will be arriving in stores very soon.  The average quilter has to have time to shop, plan, sew and quilt.  As you know putting it all together takes time.  Starting your fall quilts in the spring means you have a good chance of finishing them in time to enjoy them in the fall season.  (Remember, as all quilters known, if you don't finish for this Halloween, it just means you are on track to finish EARLY for next Halloween!).  

    Now back to our adventures in photography.  I am truly thankful for digital cameras.  I am old enough to remember the good ole days when film, with a limited number of shots was your only option.  Then you had to wait for the film to be developed, and hope for a good outcome on at least some of the prints.  If those failed, you had to do the whole process over again.  Now I truly appreciate the ability to shoot, shoot, shoot then upload and delete, delete, delete.  

    My editing skills are pretty basic.  I can make some simple adjustments, but nothing too complicated.  I did figure out how to edit and remove my husbands shoes.  I also enlarged the quilt and faded the background.  The results are fun, but the photo was still not the grab your attention look I was looking for.

Luckily I had taken a few standard tossed-over-the-railing shots that needed little or no editing.  This is the photo that you will see on Instagram and in other social media posts.

Now I am off to wrap a few empty boxes to look like Christmas gifts.  I will grab a few holiday decorations out of the attic space and flick the switch to light the fireplace in our family room.  

Ho, Ho, Ho, instant - temporary - Christmas.  

I have had several people in the Nine Patch a Day Group on Facebook ask if there will be a pattern for the Little Monsters quilt.  There is a very good chance that will happen, but first I have to make the project a second time, using a different fabric line.  When a suitable group of fabrics crosses my cutting table, I will make the quilt again and write finished instructions using my cryptic notes before posting them to the Nine Patch a Day Group.

  

    

    

    

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Harder Than it Looks

    One of my favorite parts of working with Jaftex as a Brand Ambassador is the creative challenge.  They send a package of fabric about every 6 weeks and my job is to make it into something wonderful.  The last Jaftex project I completed was using Beachy Keen by Janelle Falk for Blank Quilting.  For that fabric line I created two projects.  This beach ball table runner will be featured on social media.  This is patterned after my Beach Ball Runner from the Scrap Crazy for More book using the 6" templates that I designed for Creative Grids.

    

    The second project is a larger quilt patterned after my single page pattern called Woven Rain.  That quilt project will be featured on the SIY website in May 2023.  SIY stands for Sew It Yourself.  That website is provided by Jaftex and has a host of free patterns using fabric lines from the six different companies that fall under the Jaftex brand.  

    Part of the Brand Ambassador job is taking progress shots as you make the quilt and then final style shots when the project is complete.  I live near the beach in Florida so style shots for the Beachy Keen project with sand, water and waves should not be a problem.... right?  

    I start with collection photos and then try to remember to take progress shots along the way.

        When I finish the quilt, the fun begins.  I look for interesting places all around the little town on our island to take the style shots.  I shop for props that match or coordinate and start planning the photos.

  

        For Beachy Keen, I had a crazy idea for a photo.  Wouldn't be awsome to toss the quilt at the waters edge and then take a video of the beautiful white water rolling over it?   Then I could reverse the video and run it in slow motion.  The result would look like the ocean was receding and revealing the quilt!  Totally cool eye-candy for social media!  I convinced my husband to be my quilt wrangler.  His job was to get the quilt in position, timing the waves and make sure that it didn't wash out to sea!  Off to the beach we went on a chilly and a what turned out to be a bit too windy of a day.

      As a precaution, we took several "dry" shots before getting the quilt wet.

We even took a short video of a classic quilt drop.  

(For some reason Blogger won't let me share it here.)

Then it was time for the money shot.  

We talked it through and made a plan so that we both knew exactly what we would be doing.

I would be dodging waves, handling the camera.  My husband tossing, spreading and quilt wrangling.  

We should have let Mother Nature in on the conversation.  

Obviously she didn't understand how to perform her part.

Instead of beautiful white water, we got a dirty looking sandy mess.  

Instead of washing over the quilt the waves scrunched it up like the ocean was rejecting it and

 pushing it out of the way.

The few hardy people on the beach were both amused and willing to lend a hand or at least share their opinions on what we were doing wrong.

The real problem was me, attempting photography WAY above my pay grade!

FYI

The quilt is safe and sound.  It was dried, and then the sand was brushed off. 

It has been through the washer and dryer so it is softer and a bit more crinkled 

than it was before it's run in with  Mother Nature.

  

    

It's the Little Things That Make My Day.

      Earlier this month I stopped into Cinnamons Quilt Shop in Jacksonville Florida and I picked up a copy of the All Florida Shop Hop magazine.  I absolutely love this idea!  From what I have seen, the two women that run the state wide program are doing a top-notch job of organization, promotion, marketing and making a difference in the quilting industry.  I have heard good things from consumers, participating shops and the vendors that support them. Their plan is to cover the entire US, state-by-state or by region.  If your state doesn't have a hop, there will be a hop coming to your area in the future.

    I'm not sure that I will be hopping to many stores during the event, but I did want a copy of the magazine so that I can check-out the quilt shops as my husband and I travel around the state.  You never know when a road trip might need a detour for a fabric fix ;).

    I was flipping through the magazine and came across this:

It made my day!

   In addition to the shop listings, the magazine features seven quilt patterns.  This particular quilt caught my eye.  Then I checked out the "recommended tools".  That's my Perfect Rectangle Ruler!  If you are a veteran of the Brown Bag Mystery, then you already know that the Perfect Rectangle Ruler is one of the rulers that we used for the 2022 Brown Bag Mystery quilt.  You probably already own one!  

   It might seem silly, but I get excited when other designers use my tools.

   If you are a Brown Bag Mystery veteran that is chomping at the bit for the next clue, why don't you order the magazine from a Florida shop and put that Perfect Rectangle to work on another project?  I would bet that Cinnamons in Jacksonville, or Boutique 4 Quilters in Melbourn, or Cotton Patch in University Park would be more than happy to help.