On learning to quilt

Happy June, friends!

I was thrilled to flip that last calendar page. With June came the opening of our community pool, a taste of some actual summer-like weather, the simplifying of our weekly calendar and the anticipation of the arrival of baby boy! Lord willing, we are somewhere within the 2-week waiting period, and we cannot wait to get our hands on this little guy! I've been doing my best to keep the house picked up, to finish up some creative projects and to enjoy each moment with Maren. I know our life is about to change in so many ways!

Some of the projects I've been working on have stemmed from a new little hobby I've picked up. A couple of months ago I took a leap out of my comfort zone and joined the Front Range Modern Quilt Guild. My mother-in-law is a seasoned quilter, and she invited me to join this new guild in our area. For the past several years I have enjoyed sewing, but making quilts seemed like such a significant undertaking. I had no idea how inspired I'd be by the other amazing women in the guild, and I've surprised myself with some of the projects I've taken on already. If you've ever been interested in learning to quilt, I highly recommend joining a local modern quilt guild. I've learned so much already, and I haven't felt any pressure or intimidation from the more experienced members of the group. It's been such an inspiring and fun creative outlet.

So...I introduce my first ever quiltish project...a sunny little mug rug for a guild swap. I have to admit, it was a little difficult for me to give this away! Thankfully, my partner seemed to love it. Our assignment was to make a summery mug rug. I completely made up the pattern and was thrilled with the way it came together!

I raw-edge appliqued the sun circles...

I wanted the actual quilting part to look like a sun with rays...
The mug rug was a great beginning quilting project. I learned so much, and it was small enough to finish quickly. I learned all the quilting steps without working on a monstrous project. I think my mug rug was about 7 in. by 9 in. finished. If you're interested in learning to quilt, I highly recommend starting with something like this!

I'm almost finished with my first larger quilt, and I can't wait to share it with you. As part of the guild, we were given a charm pack of Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton Solids. We had to make up a quilt using some of each color from the pack and one other fabric for the quilt top. Once the binding is stitched on, the quilt will be complete. So far I've loved my venture out into the quilting world.

Do you have a desire to learn a new creative hobby? I say go for it!