My new habitat {pillow}

A couple months ago, I was lucky enough to take home some fat eighths of Jay McCarroll's Habitat fabric for a little quilt guild challenge. The fabric reminded me of time spent playing in the woods near my parents' cottage. I was inspired to make a funky little pillow cover that now reminds me of playing in the woods, or as we called them, 'the birches'.

I cut random sized strips from my favorite fabrics for the 'branches' on the front. I left the edges raw so the stripes would have a messy, frayed look.

For the back of the pillow I pieced together some bigger strips of the fabric. I snagged a few extra pieces from guild friends who hadn't used all their fabric.



I love the way the pillow turned out, and I love the little reminder of a favorite autumn childhood memory that now sits on my entry bench.

Quilt blocks

I finally got around to taking some pictures of my first three blocks for our FRMQG monthly swap. It's been so fun to make some different things, and to get inspired for my own future projects.

August {Kristen}

September {Melissa}

October {Traci}

A good night at quilt guild

I have thoroughly enjoyed being a member of the Front Range Modern Quilt Guild. I am learning so much, have made some lovely new friends, and appreciate having a fun evening out every month. Last night's meeting was particularly great. It started on a pleasant note when I was able to leave Truett home with Brett and Maren. It's so nice that he's to the point where I can leave him for for a few hours. I do love having him around, but a little break is welcomed every now and again. I'm so blessed to have a husband who enjoys his alone time with the kids. It is a gift!

My friends in the guild presented me with a lovely quilt in celebration of Truett's arrival. Each participant made a brightly colored 9 patch and I think it turned out so fun!



I also managed to win a fabulous giveaway thoughtfully put together by Randi. Each month the winner of this basket gets to keep all the goodies inside. Now it's my job to fill the basket with some fun things for next month's winner. I do have to say that I was lucky to win this month...it was filled with some perfect items for a new quilter.
I was also fortunate enough to snag those yellow and aqua fat quarters. See why it was such a good night? By the way, if you've never tried that toffee sea salt chocolate bar from Whole Foods you are missing out...YUM!

My first quilt

I did it! I finished my very first quilt! A few months ago, I joined the Front Range Modern Quilt Guild. It has been one of the most fun and inspiring things I've done in quite some time. I've also been blessed to make some wonderful new friends.

One benefit of being a guild member is having the opportunity to participate in various challenges. For this quilt, we were given [yup...for FREE!] a charm pack of Robert Kaufman Kona Cotton Solids. The 'rules' chosen by our guild were to include at least a portion from each color in the pack, to only use one additional fabric for the front of the quilt, and to create a quilt that was at least 40 in. by 40 in.

Here is my finished quilt:

I love how cheerful and summery the quilt turned out. The flowers and leaves are raw-edge appliqued, and I used a simple grid pattern for the machine quilting.

After the quilt was washed, the edges of the flowers have a cool, messy texture.

I had an equally great time finishing the back of this quilt.


I'm officially hooked! There are 3 more in-progress quilts sitting on the table in my craft room. I'm so thankful to have a creative outlet. It's nice to have something to keep my hands and mind busy during my evenings. If you've got a spare moment or two, check out what some other quilters from across the country have created for their own Robert Kaufman challenge quilts here. There are some mighty talented individuals out there in the quilting world!